Pennsylvania Democrats sue over GOP election 'investigation'

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: AP

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Democrats in Pennsylvania’s state Senate sued Friday evening in a state court to block a Republican-approved subpoena seeking voter information and to put a stop to what Republicans call a “forensic investigation” of last year’s presidential election. Democrats had said they would sue within days after the Republican-controlled Senate Intergovernmental Operations Committee voted Wednesday to issue a subpoena. The subpoena seeks detailed state election records, including communication with counties and the names of who voted in last year’s presidential election, their birth date, address, driver’s license number and the last four digits of their Social Security number.

The subpoena is an outgrowth of former President Donald Trump’s baseless claims that he was cheated out of victory last November, and ongoing pressure by Trump and his allies for battleground states where he lost to investigate the election. “The latest ploy by the Senate Republicans is unprecedented and completely unwarranted,” Democrats said in a statement. “All aspects of the certified 2020 election have been thoroughly reviewed and adjudicated in the courts with no findings of irregularities or fraud. The timeframe to contest the 2020 certified election results is long overdue.” The 53-page lawsuit, filed by all 21 Senate Democrats, contends that the Senate Republican bid to investigate the election illegally treads on the court’s duties, violates state law over election audits and seeks information that is barred from public disclosure.

The subpoena was emailed to senior Department of State officials on Thursday, according to a Senate Republican spokesperson. The majority of the information being requested is already available to the public, according to state Attorney General Josh Shapiro, a Democrat. But Pennsylvania law prohibits the public release of a voter’s driver’s license number and Social Security number. Republicans have maintained that they are exercising appropriate legislative authority to oversee executive branch functions, and they insist what they call an “investigation” has nothing to do with Trump or overturning the election. Rather, they say, they are aiming to fix problems discovered in last year’s election and improve confidence in elections.

“Hopefully it will accomplish one of two things,” Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman, R-Centre, said at Wednesday’s committee meeting. “Either it will give us action items to better our laws moving forward for the next election, or we can dispel a lot of concerns about the last election. ... I think both of those are good.” Democrats say Republicans are simply perpetuating Trump’s “big lie” of baseless claims about election fraud that have eroded confidence in elections and are on a path to try to take away voting rights and undermine both democracy and elections. Meanwhile in Washington on Friday, two Democratic members of Congress — Rep. Zoe Lofgren of California, chairperson of the House Administration Committee, and Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon of Pennsylvania, the committee’s vice chair — wrote to a senior U.S. Department of Justice official to request a federal investigation into the subpoena.


Read more: https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-pennsylvania-lawsuits-presidential-elections-state-elections-eb385ca3a6867aac19434105bdb47ec1

---

Copy of suit (PDF) - https://pasenate.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/PetitionforReview-Costa-et-al-v.-Corman-et-al-9.17.21_timestamped.pdf

PA Senate Democrats statement - https://pasenate.com/senate-democrats-file-lawsuit-against-overreaching-senate-republican-subpoena/

Here's a tweet from the PA Senate Democrats talking about the suit filed last night -

Link to tweet

TEXT

PaSenateDems
@PaSenateDems
This afternoon, we filed a lawsuit in court to keep Senate Republicans from obtaining Pennsylvania voters’ private information with subpoenas.

We will continue the fight to protect the identity of private citizens and their right to vote without intimidation.
Image
6:52 PM · Sep 17, 2021

Link to tweet

TEXT

PaSenateDems
@PaSenateDems
Senate Republicans are issuing subpoenas for the private voter information of 7 MILLION Pennsylvanians.

We are taking them to court to keep your personal information kept private.
Senate Democrats to Take Legal Action Against Overreaching Republican Subpoena and Corrupt Election...
Harrisburg – September 15, 2021 – Following today’s Senate Intergovernmental Operations Committee hearing, of which had one agenda item- Consideration of a motion to authorize the issuance of...
pasenate.com
4:00 PM · Sep 17, 2021

Link to tweet

TEXT

PaSenateDems
@PaSenateDems
Senate Republicans are subpoenaing your:

✅ Name
✅ Address
✅ Social security number
✅ Drivers license number
✅ Email address

We believe in your freedom to vote WITHOUT having your personal information exposed.

That's why we're going to court.
Republicans in Pennsylvania subpoena personal data on every voter in state - The Boston Globe
Pennsylvania Republicans moved Wednesday to seek personal information on every voter in the state as part of a brewing partisan review of the 2020 election results, rubber-stamping more than a dozen...
bostonglobe.com
11:14 AM · Sep 17, 2021

[SheltieLover]

1. K&R!

[BumRushDaShow]

2. Glad to see it

because the local media has been "hush hush" about it.

[SheltieLover]

5. Me too!

'Bout time!

[Cryptoad]

3. WE,,,,,

need to do like the Big Cheese did,,,,, "subpoena - subhoena" ,,, who they going to get to enforce it..?

[Marthe48]

4. If the information is private, glad they are suing, but in Ohio, it isn't

I am doing some volunteer data entry for the local Democratic party org. For free, with no pw or any restrictions, I can go Ohio B.O.E. and link to an up-to-date voter report generation and look at that kind of info. The db includes names, addresses, d.o.b. voting records, such as absentee or mail-in.

I've been following this story this week and doing the volunteer clerical at the same time, so I am surprised at what I can look at in Ohio, but the Pa idiots subpoenaed to see.

[BumRushDaShow]

6. Much of the info is already public record

EXCEPT the Social Security number (last 4 digits, where up until a decade ago, you could piece it together to get the first 5 because the numbering was assigned by "region/group" but now it is randomized). And I don't think the Driver's License numbers are "public records" either.

The (D) State AG already noted that when the subpoenas first went out -

Link to tweet

TEXT

AG Josh Shapiro
@PAAttorneyGen
No need for subpoenas, you guys already have access.

CC: @JakeCorman and Senator Dush.

https://dos.pa.gov/VotingElections/Documents/Elections%20Division/requestvoterlists.pdf
1:18 PM · Sep 15, 2021

The link in his tweet is to the process for requesting the voter database (PDF) -https://t.co/O8X8vb57WR?amp=1

And he spoke with Anderson Cooper about this yestreday -

Link to tweet

TEXT

Josh Shapiro
@JoshShapiroPA
Pennsylvania Republicans want your social security number, your driver’s license number, and your voting history, all in the name of their sham “audit.”

Let me be clear: I will take every legal step necessary to protect your privacy — and protect our democracy.
11:06 AM · Sep 17, 2021

I thought this was an interesting incident -

Link to tweet

TEXT

AG Josh Shapiro
@PAAttorneyGen
This committee wants to ignore facts they don’t like.
Justin Sweitzer
@justin_sweitzer
Replying to @justin_sweitzer
Dush just temporarily halted the hearing after Sen. Vincent Hughes brought up the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
3:04 PM · Sep 16, 2021

There was a state Capitol reporter live-tweeting their subpoena hearing (I got it unrolled) - https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1438136336305766401.html

[Marthe48]

9. I'd be more worried about the fraudit purveyors cleaning out my bank account

I hope the Pa AG prevails. The people behind these fake audits are super sketchy, and I wouldn't trust them with recipe notes.

[BumRushDaShow]

12. 2 Democratic Cngresswomen have already sent letters to the DOJ to investigate

Both Rep. Zoe Lofgren & Rep Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-5), the former as Chair of the Committee on House Administration and the latter both Vice Chair of that same Committee as well as of the House Judiciary Committee -

Link to tweet

TEXT

Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon
@RepMGS
PA Republicans' fishing expedition to seize private, sensitive information from millions of voters is absurd — and could be a violation of federal voting and election laws. @HouseAdm_Dems Chair @RepZoeLofgren and I are asking DOJ's @CivilRights Division to investigate.
Image
Image
Image
5:59 PM · Sep 17, 2021

[Marthe48]

22. I saw the responses, glad someone is acting

Just have to keep stamping out the fires. Thanks for this imformative post and all of the stories that add information.

[ShazzieB]

13. Definitely a legitimate worry.

Especially considering that the PA state legislature hasn't even identified who is going to conduct this "audit" (i.e., have access to all this information), much less what purpose it's going to be used for!

[ShazzieB]

11. Shapiro sums it up nicely in his interview with Anderson Cooper...

...when he says that most of the info being publicly available confirms "the charade that this really is," and that "there's absolutely no legitimate legislative purpose" to this.

I think that last part could be the key to quashing this thing. If the legislature can't show that there is a "legitimate legislative purpose" to this, they do not have the right to subpoena all this information.

[BumRushDaShow]

14. I just posted this above

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=2801983

There were 2 members of Congress (including one from one of the Districts that includes parts of Philly and suburban Philly, where folks might recall they were also involved with the impeachment process) who sent a letter to DOJ's Civil Rights Division to investigate the subpoenas. Their letters cite the violations of PA statute related to the request.

[gab13by13]

7. They want the voter information to gerrymander districts.

Where is our DOJ? If Pa. GQPers get what they are asking for they will be violating federal election/Voting laws.

The Arizona fraudit violated federal Election/Voting laws.

[BumRushDaShow]

8. "Where is our DOJ?"

I know the OP excerpt was long and the AP article was huge, but it's the last sentence in the last paragraph in the excerpt -

Meanwhile in Washington on Friday, two Democratic members of Congress — Rep. Zoe Lofgren of California, chairperson of the House Administration Committee, and Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon of Pennsylvania, the committee’s vice chair — wrote to a senior U.S. Department of Justice official to request a federal investigation into the subpoena.

[monkeyman1]

16. do this include all documents on all government people & info ?

[bucolic_frolic]

10. The light of truth on the lie of their motives is "or we can dispel a lot of concerns"

embellishment and hyperbole "a lot of".

There were no concerns. Counted already. It's over.

"a lot of" is the equivalent to "some people are saying".

This is trying to paint this as a bandwagon effect when it is actually just a few Republican partisans.

[BumRushDaShow]

15. Well when you have the President Pro-Tempore of the PA State Senate going all-in

it just underscores how craven the so-called "GOP" leadership have become. Rather than try to "sell" their policy positions to the public, they have adopted the strategy of "do the opposite of what Democrats suggest you do" - even if it was something that might have been a Republican idea originally. That leaves them with pretzel-twisted ways to suppress their "opposition", even if it hurts their own in the process.

[CaptainTruth]

17. "legislative authority to oversee executive branch functions"

From the AP article;

"Republicans have maintained that they are exercising appropriate legislative authority to oversee executive branch functions"

Gosh, I remember not that long ago when Congress attempted to exercise their legislative authority to oversee TFG's executive branch functions & TFG told them to take a hike.

Republican hypocrisy is un-freaking believable.

[monkeyman1]

18. take it to the Supreme Court , but that's a lost fucking cause !

[BumRushDaShow]

19. The request already violates the state law

Per the letter that 2 members of Congress sent to DOJ as posted here - https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=2801983

Where they have a footnote to this statement -

While Pennsylvania's election code provides that a public information list containing the name, address, date of birth and voting history of voters can be publicly accessed, it does not provide for access to sensitive and private information such as a voter's driver's license number and portions of social security numbers. 4

And the footnote references -

4 Pa. Code § 1404

Which is this -

Pennsylvania Statutes Title 25 Pa.C.S.A. Elections § 1404. Public information lists

Current as of January 01, 2019 | Updated by FindLaw Staff
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(a) Establishment.--

(1) A commission shall provide for computer inquiries concerning individual registered electors.  With respect to each registered elector who is the subject of an inquiry, the information provided shall contain the name, address, date of birth and voting history.  Upon request, the commission shall supply a printed record for each such elector subject to the provisions of this part.  In addition, the commission may make available for inspection a printed or computerized public information list containing the name, address, date of birth and voting history of each registered elector in the county.

(2) The list may also include information on voting districts.

(3) The list may not contain the digitized or electronic signature or SURE registration number of the registered elector.

(b) Access.--

(1) The secretary may promulgate reasonable regulations governing access to the list.

(2) No individual inspecting the list may tamper with or alter it.

(3) No individual who inspects the list or who acquires names of registered electors from the list may use information contained in the list for purposes unrelated to elections, political activities or law enforcement.  Before inspecting the list or obtaining names of registered electors or other information from the list, the individual must provide identification to the public official having custody of the public information list and must state in writing that any information obtained from the list will not be used for purposes unrelated to elections, political activities or law enforcement.

(c) Copies.--

(1) The commission shall provide paper copies of the public information lists and may provide copies in some other form to any registered elector in this Commonwealth within ten days of receiving a written request accompanied by payment of the cost of reproduction and postage.  The cost of the copies shall be determined by the office providing copies.

(2) An individual who inspects or acquires a copy of a public information list may not use any information contained in it for purposes unrelated to elections, political activities or law enforcement.

https://codes.findlaw.com/pa/title-25-pacsa-elections/pa-csa-sect-25-1404.html

Nothing in there about "social security number" or "driver's license number". So I expect this will be part of what is in the lawsuit filed in the State court (where the state Supreme Court is 5 (D) - 2 (R)).

I am still reading through the lawsuit that the PA State Senate Democrats filed - it's 178 pages I don't think the SCOTUS would need to weigh in on it since it can be litigated as a violation of state law. However Democrats can counter in the federal courts if they cite the VRA, but I suppose they may want to get an injunction/stay in state court first before proceeding to federal court.

[monkeyman1]

20. holy shit !

not even gon'a try to argue with ya on this on , glad too see people like you digging & have at it ! I'll be paying attention to your post's & glad to see ya doing to right thing ! don't bother me one bit to read when somebody correct 'me on the truth!

[BumRushDaShow]

23. LOL

[monkeyman1]

24. back at ya!

[geretogo]

21. These Neo Nazi's need to be stopped NOW or witness the end of the Republic . Damn them to HELL . Dam

them .

[monkeyman1]

25. there getting ready to go back underground ! they don't have choice !

[gab13by13]

27. The GQP in fact does control the language,

even Democrats and Duers call Trump's fence a wall.

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

29. The demanded information will be given to an unspecified private company for an unspecified purpose

with no description of how the information will be protected. All at the cost of millions of dollars to taxpayers. Such a deal.

Putin must be clapping his hands in glee. His plan to destroy U.S. democracy by installing a narcissistic sociopath as president is going better than he could have ever hoped.

[BumRushDaShow]

30. I expect

or am at least hopeful, that a state court puts a stay on it per what I posted above - https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=2802009

There are public records for voters available from the PA SOS that include everything but what has generally been considered "PII" (Personally Identifable Information) like SS #s and DL #s.

There's a policy about that (PDF) - https://www.oa.pa.gov/Policies/Documents/itp_sec025.pdf

There is even a 2005 state law that talks about PII and breaches - https://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/LI/US/HTM/2005/0/0094..HTM

(which could conceivably be stretched to apply to anyone (like the GOP loons) offering up my PII to some rogue 3rd party)