RNC Says Pennsylvania County Ignored State Law Before Sending Out Mail-In Ballots

The Republican National Committee said Wednesday that a county in Pennsylvania sent out 2024 election ballots without conducting accuracy testing required by state laws.

RNC Pennsylvania’s Election Integrity Counsel Linda Kerns said that officials in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania’s third most populous county, had sent out mail-in and absentee ballots without logic and accuracy tests. Kerns said that the county must remedy the situation by hand counting the ballots when returned.

“The Republican National Committee seeks a free and fair election for all voters in this Commonwealth. Montgomery County’s defiance of mandatory testing undermines confidence and trust in the integrity of the election,” Kerns wrote in a letter to Montgomery County Board of Elections Chair Neil Makhija. “Our proposed remedy — to segregate and count by hand the affected ballots — protects the rights of voters who, through no fault of their own, received ballots that the county distributed in violation of law.”

Kerns pointed to directives from the Pennsylvania secretary of state that say election officials “must conduct pre-election logic and accuracy testing.”

According to the directive, the purpose of these tests is to “ensure that ballots, scanners, ballot-marking devices, and all components of a county’s certified voting system are properly configured and in good working order prior to being used in an election.”

The RNC said that Montgomery County should immediately stop sending out all ballots until the completion of mandatory testing.

Montgomery County told The Daily Wire that the RNC’s letter was not accurate.

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Kerns added that the RNC had already lodged a complaint with the Montgomery County Election Tip Line.

“Pennsylvania voters deserve to know why these ballots were distributed without testing and be assured Montgomery County is counting them properly,” said RNC Chair Michael Whatley said. “This is an unacceptable breach of election integrity, and all legal options are on the table.”

On Tuesday, Makhija posted on X that he had “cast the first 2024 General Election ballot in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.” He added that 115,000 ballots would be shipped out this week.

The Daily Wire reached out to Makhija for comment on the RNC’s letter.

Pennsylvania is expected to be one of the battlegrounds that determine whether former President Donald Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris wins then election.