Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, urged voters who had voting-related questions to contact a Democratic Party voter assistance hotline which sparked backlash online.
“Need help with your mail in ballot, finding out where to vote, or something else?” he wrote on Twitter. “Call the @PADems Voter Assistance Hotline. Someone will answer and help you out. Call 1-833-PA-VOTES.”
Need help with your mail in ballot, finding out where to vote, or something else?
Call the @PADems Voter Assistance Hotline. Someone will answer and help you out. Call 1-833-PA-VOTES pic.twitter.com/Jf9KfLtNRI
— Josh Shapiro (@JoshShapiroPA) November 3, 2020
“Thank you for calling the Pennsylvania Democratic Party voter assistance hotline,” a prompt says when the number is dialed. “If you have a question about voting, please press one. If you need a ride to your polling location, please press two.”
Attorney Harmeet K. Dhillon, a Republican, fired back on Twitter, writing: “Isn’t it your JOB to make sure ALL citizens get the help they need to vote? Instead you are thuggishly trying to intimidate and block Republican poll watchers and lawyers and volunteers. This is a shameful performance even for a Democrat.”
Isn't it your JOB to make sure ALL citizens get the help they need to vote? Instead you are thuggishly trying to intimidate and block Republican poll watchers and lawyers and volunteers. This is a shameful performance even for a Democrat. https://t.co/7FMgL6Gi4Y
— Harmeet K. Dhillon (@pnjaban) November 3, 2020
The official pro-Trump Super PAC, America First Action, wrote: “Wow. The Pennsylvania AG is openly directing voters to the state Democratic party with voting questions.”
Wow.
The Pennsylvania AG is openly directing voters to the state Democratic party with voting questions. https://t.co/lDAjCcJefa
— America First (@AmericaFirstPAC) November 3, 2020
Shapiro sparked controversy yesterday when he stated on Twitter: “If all the votes are added up in PA, Trump is going to lose. That’s why he’s working overtime to subtract as many votes as possible from this process. For the record, he’s 0-6 against us in court. We’ve protected voting rights. Now, ignore the noise—vote!”
“Polling figures coming out of Pennsylvania, a battleground state with 20 electoral votes, are showing Democratic nominee Joe Biden with a narrow 2.9 percent lead over Trump — but the polling is well within the four point margin of error,” Fox News reported. “Trump won Pennsylvania by a slim margin of .7 percent in 2016, despite the polls having showed Hillary Clinton with a larger lead than Biden one day before the general election.”
National Review senior political correspondent Jim Geraghty responded: “The person in charge of enforcing the law – regarding the election and everything else – in Pennsylvania just declared that Trump cannot legitimately win his state.”
The person in charge of enforcing the law – regarding the election and everything else – in Pennsylvania just declared that Trump cannot legitimately win his state. https://t.co/FXSJUQ4t6K
— Jim Geraghty (@jimgeraghty) November 2, 2020
National Review senior writer David Harsanyi wrote: “Can you imagine the reaction if the Texas GOP AG was calling the race before the votes were counted? What if there is a legitimate problem and this goes to the courts?”
What if there is a legitimate problem and this goes to the courts?
— David Harsanyi (@davidharsanyi) November 2, 2020