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A judge expands early voting in suburban Philadelphia County after the Trump campaign sues

A judge expands early voting in suburban Philadelphia County after the Trump campaign sues

HARRISBURG, Pa. — On Wednesday, a Pennsylvania judge sided with the Trump campaign and agreed to expand in-person voting in suburban Philadelphia County, where long lines on the last day led to complaints that voters were disenfranchised by an unprepared election office.

Judge Jeffrey Trauger said in a one-page order that Bucks County voters who want to apply for early absentee voting now have until Friday. The narrowly divided county, led by Democrats, is often seen as a political bellwether.

The Trump campaign’s lawsuit, which was filed Wednesday morning, comes amid a flurry of protests dispute AND complaints regarding voting in A state of the battlefield this is expected to play a key role in electing the next president in the 2024 elections.

The lawsuit asked for a one-day extension, until 5 p.m. on Wednesday, so that Bucks County voters can request an absentee ballot in person, a method known in Pennsylvania as mail-in-demand voting. The judge’s order allows applications to be filed by the end of the business day on Friday.

Bucks County officials said they are “pleased to offer additional days to those who still wish to vote by request.”

Trump and Republicans hailed the ruling as a victory.

“Today’s ruling truly represents a victory of sorts that ensures Pennsylvanians have a safe and orderly trial,” Bill McGinley, attorney for the Republican National Committee and the Trump campaign.

Neighboring Lehigh County asked a judge on Tuesday to extend the deadline by one day, to Wednesday, because of road closures in downtown Allentown around Trump rally blocked access to the electoral office. The judge agreed.

In Bucks County, the Trump campaign’s lawsuit argues that people who lined up to request an absentee ballot in person before Tuesday’s 5 p.m. should be able to receive a ballot even after the deadline. However, the Bucks County elections office denied voters that right and ordered them to leave, according to the lawsuit.

“This is a direct violation of the rights of Pennsylvanians to cast a ballot, and all voters have the right to STAND IN LINE,” the Trump campaign said in a statement.

Republican National Committee and Campaign Republican Party Senate candidate David McCormick joined the lawsuit.

In 2020, Bucks elected President Joe Biden (52-47) when he held the state. Four years earlier, Hillary Clinton won the Bucks by a 49-48 margin when Trump won Pennsylvania.

Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration has urged counties to allow any voter who gets in line before the 5 p.m. deadline to request an absentee ballot. In response to criticism and misinformation on social media Tuesday, Bucks County said any voter who is in line by 5 p.m. Tuesday will be able to apply for an absentee ballot.

Pennsylvania does not allow early voting with voting machines at polling places, as some states do.

But Bucks County, like other Pennsylvania counties, allows voters to request and receive an absentee ballot in person at an election office, a time-consuming process maxed out by Trump’s calls for his supporters to get out and vote before Tuesday’s deadline. Voters can also complete it and submit it to the office.

On Tuesday, voters waited as long as three hours. The lawsuit says people who were still waiting in line at 5 p.m. were ordered to go home.

In neighboring Lehigh County, a steady stream of voters took advantage of the one-day extension Wednesday and went to the basement of the Allentown voter registration office to apply for, fill out and return an absentee ballot. election workers explained the process as voters emerged into the crowded hallway.

“There are great representatives here who tell everyone what to do and how to do it. It moves smoothly. “I’m excited to be here,” said Jeanne Birosik, a Republican Party voter, as she waited for election board workers to prepare her absentee ballot.

Birosik usually votes on Election Day, but she said she showed up at her polling place in 2020 and was wrongly told she had already voted. She then filled out a provisional ballot, but she didn’t want to leave anything to chance in this election.

“It just seemed like a safer way,” she said.

Her husband, Chris Birosik, 62, who was also present to vote, said that weeks ago they had not considered leaving their ballots by mail – he thought it would be too risky.

“I just feel more confident that we’re going to approach it and do it this way,” he said.

Concern over early voting in Bucks County is the latest end to the confusion voting in Pennsylvaniawhich has the most electoral votes of any battleground state and by far most visited state in this year’s Democratic and Republican presidential tickets. The run-up to Election Day in the state was marked by numerous battles over absentee ballots, with some landing in on the doorstep of the United States Supreme Court.

In Erie County, where more than 40,000 people have requested early absentee ballots, Democrats in Wednesday’s lawsuit raised concerns that thousands of voters were still waiting for them. The lawsuit also alleged that about 1,800 ballots were lost due to postal problems and that about 300 people received two ballots, some for the wrong races.

To address these issues, the county agreed to extend voter registration hours and help voters submit provisional ballots on Tuesday. Meanwhile, a hearing is scheduled for Thursday in state court.

“We just want to make sure this problem doesn’t continue by overwhelming the system with provisional ballots,” said Clifford Levine, an adviser to the Pennsylvania Democratic Party. “I think everyone wants everyone’s voice to count.”

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Associated Press reporters Michael Rubinkam in Allentown, Mike Catalini in Morrisville, Maryclaire Dale in Philadelphia and Nicholas Riccardi in Denver contributed to this story.

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Follow Marc Levy on twitter.com/timelywriter.