In Addition to the Military Ballots and Envelopes that were Discarded and Recovered, Investigators Recovered Four apparently Official, Bar-Coded, Absentee Ballot Envelopes that were Empty.
One Empty Envelope contains Basic Location Information and the Words “affirmation enclosed” on the Reverse side.
Two Envelopes had the Completed Attestations and Signatures on the Reverse Side.
One Envelope with a Handwritten Return Address was Blank on the Reverse Side.
The Majority of the Recovered Materials were found in an Outside Dumpster.
The Appropriate Method for Processing received Military Ballots is to Securely Store the Ballot, Unopened, until such time as Ballot Pre-Canvassing can begin, which is in Not Earlier than 7:00 a.m. on Election Day.
Opening a Military or Overseas Ballot, or an Absentee or Mail-in-Ballot for that matter, Violates the Controlling Statutes and is Contrary to Pennsylvania Department of State Guidance.
The Preliminary Findings of this Inquiry are Troubling and the Luzerne County Bureau of Elections must Comply with All Applicable State and Federal Election Laws and Guidance to ensure that All Votes, regardless of Party, are Counted to Ensure an Accurate Election Count.
Even though the Staff had made some Attempts to Reconstitute certain of the Improperly Opened Ballots, there is No Guarantee that Any of these Votes will be Counted in the General Election.
The Investigation has Revealed that All or nearly All Envelopes received in the Elections Office were Opened as a matter of course.
It was Explained to Investigators the Envelopes used for Official Overseas, Military, Absentee, and Mail-in-Ballot Requests are so similar, that the Staff believed that Adhering to the Protocol of Preserving Envelopes Unopened would cause them to Miss such Ballot Requests.
Interviews further Revealed that this Issue was a Problem in the Primary Election, therefore a known Issue, and that the Problem has Not been Corrected.
Then the Annoucement of the Candidate Name Selected is an Violation of Election Law.
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