DV Journal

Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Bucks) and Republican state legislators are demanding action after dozens of people who waited in line to vote early at Bucks County election offices were turned away.

The GOP elected officials sent a letter to the county commissioners calling out the office’s failure and insisting on improvement.

“It is our responsibility as elected officials to ensure easy access to voting for all our constituents while also instilling confidence in our electoral process,” said the letter, obtained by the DVJournal. “One can argue that there is no greater threat to our democracy than to have voter disenfranchisement or distrust in our electoral process. As elected officials, we are deeply troubled by the recent reports and widespread constituent concerns over the last 24 hours involving Bucks County voters who were looking to cast their ballots at the Board of Elections Office this past Saturday.”

Though early voting was scheduled to continue until 2 p.m., more than 60 people standing in line at noon were told the line was going to be cut off and about 20 people were sent away.

“Many constituents now fear they will not have the opportunity to vote in this year’s election,” the letter said. “…this incident sent shockwaves throughout our community and is causing individuals to lose faith in our electoral process. The potential disenfranchisement of voters must be rectified so that every eligible voter is able to vote.”

“We ask that the county government provide an immediate remedy for affected voters consistent with the law and urge our Board of Elections to stay open for as long as it takes leading up to the Oct. 29 deadline to ensure every resident is afforded the opportunity to vote,” the letter read.

In addition to Fitzpatrick, the letter was signed by Bucks County state Sens. Frank Farry and Jarrett Coleman and state Reps. Joseph Hogan, Craig Staats, Kathleen “K.C.” Tomlinson, Shelby Labs, and Kristin Marcell.

The Republican National Committee also sent a letter to Pennsylvania Secretary of State Al Schmidt.

“With only eight days until Election Day, Pennsylvanians across the commonwealth deserve every option available to exercise their civic duty. But voters are being turned away, given faulty information, and told their ballots will not be counted,” RNC chair Michael Whatley wrote. “This is nothing short of voter suppression, and we demand immediate action to ensure every legal vote can be cast and counted properly.”

The RNC has received “numerous concerning reports from Pennsylvania voters that computers are down, polling sites are closing early and are not accepting any more voters, and that mail ballots will not be counted.”

“Tomorrow, Oct. 29, 2024, is the last day to request a mail-in ballot in person at a county election office. No voter should be turned away, told an office is closing early, or told they cannot be accommodated if they appear during the posted business hours.

“We are asking Secretary Schmidt to provide relief immediately – supporting a ‘free, fair, safe, and secure’ election as he promised,” Whaley wrote.

Bucks County election officials did not respond when asked to comment.

Contacted by DVJournal, a spokesperson said, “The Department of State works with its county partners to ensure every eligible voter who wants to vote by mail can do so. Secretary Schmidt personally visited every county to discuss administration of the election, and emailed all counties last week to urge them to review their plans to ensure every voter has an opportunity to receive and cast a ballot. Counties across the commonwealth are facing higher than expected turnout to request and return ballots. Election officials are working around the clock to ensure that everyone who is eligible to vote and wants to can vote.”

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Saturday was a rough day for some Delaware Valley voters and and Republican Party workers.

The Montgomery County Republican Headquarters was forced to close Saturday after a phone call at 11:07 a.m. threatening to bomb it.

The incident is one of an increasing number of threats, violence, and acts of intimidation against GOP candidates, offices, and staff this cycle. These come on top of two assassination attempts against President Donald Trump — including one in Butler, Pa.

In Bucks County on Saturday voters at the Doylestown and Quakertown election centers were reportedly turned away after waiting, some for two hours, to cast an early vote.

Mary Varillo and her husband, Dominic, arrived at the Quakertown satellite office at 1:15 and were turned away by a sheriff’s deputy. The center was supposed to be open until 2 p.m. and a line of people was waiting at the building to get in.

Varillo said they are determined to vote.

“We will make sure we do vote,” she said. “We’ll get our votes in somehow. I was just surprised and disappointed.”

Daria Wilson wrote on Facebook that she drove to the Quakertown location and “had my 81-year-old mother who lives in Sellersville with me. We showed up at 1:30 p.m. and were told by a Bucks County sheriff that the line was closed and the time was 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., not 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. like the Vote.pa states on their site. Total complete insanity!!! This is not even right! Oh, and to top it off, they had Democratic reps there telling us this information and the site was wrong. They are trying to cheat even more now and I refuse to allow it.”

Also on Facebook, Bucks County GOP Chair Pat Poprik said that Vote.pa is not affiliated with the county government or the Republican Party. The site corrected the times, but had the wrong time listed all week prior to Saturday, she said.

On Sept. 6, a GOP staffer in Erie County received death threats from a Philadelphia man who said, “Your days are numbered, B***h!”

On Oct. 10, individuals forcibly entered the Delaware County Republican headquarters, threatened to kill staff, and blocked them from exiting the building.

On Oct. 17, many individuals associated with the GOP received an anonymous letter, which stated: “Should your candidate win…we know where you live, you are in the database. In the dead of a cold winter’s night, this year, or next and beyond, there is no knowing what may happen. Your property, your family may be impacted…”

“You tread on me at your peril, motherf****r. We look forward to visiting in the future.”

All incidents have been reported to local police departments and Gov. Josh Shapiro’s Election Integrity Task Force, as well as the FBI. In the meantime, Chairman Lawrence Tabas, of the Republican Party insists the party’s efforts will be undeterred.

“Nothing will stop us from working to elect those who will put our country back on track,” said Tabas. “And there should be unanimous agreement that political violence has no place in our elections, especially after an innocent Butler County husband and father lost his life to political violence. We emphatically urge Pennsylvanians to voice their opinions by voting, not violence and intimidation.”

Todd Shepherd in Broad + Liberty reported that Vote.pa, a Democratic-affiliated website, was caught earlier this year harvesting the personal data of people who used it in order to send partisan political messages. While the website might appear official, in small print it says it is part of Commonwealth Communications, a 501(c)(4) political nonprofit run by J.J. Abbott, Governor Tom Wolf’s former press secretary turned political operative.

Republican activists say they are urging voters to make their voices heard, whatever the obstacles.

“We have to remain vigilant,” Poprik said. “We have to vote.”

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