Pennsylvania Lawmaker Eyes Arizona-Like Audit of 2020 Election Results to ‘Restore’ Public Trust

The 2020 US election saw a bevy of allegations emerge regarding voter fraud, with former US President Donald Trump and his GOP supporters pushing unsubstantiated claims that ballots were uncounted, and that votes from deceased Americans were being registered. In the months since the Biden administration came into power, the claims have remained.

State Sen. David Argall (R-Schuylkill), a top Republican lawmaker who heads a key election committee in Pennsylvania, recently hinted that he is in full support of initiating an audit of the 2020 presidential election results in order to regain the public’s trust in the US voting system.

Argall serves as the leader of Pennsylvania’s Senate State Government Committee, which happens to have oversight of the election administration. His latest remarks were made during a Friday speaking engagement with Spotlight PA. 

Despite the Keystone State having already conducted two audits on the election results, Argall informed the Harrisburg-based investigative outlet that he was supportive of an independent audit similar to that which is being conducted in Arizona.

“I’m an agent of public opinion,” he said, noting a variety of his constituents have raised their concerns about the election process to him. “If we’re ever going to bring trust back into the system, I think it’s a good idea to take a second look or a third look.”

Pennsylvania Sen. David Argall, of the 29th district and chair of the Pennsylvania State Senate Majority Policy Committee, speaks during a hearing, Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2020, in Gettysburg, Pa.

Over yonder in Arizona, a partisan review of the election ballots in Maricopa County – the most populous district within the Copper State – has been ongoing for several weeks, and is expected to continue until the end of June. The re-recount process is being carried out by Florida-based contractor Cyber Ninjas, which has in its possession the nearly 2.1 million ballots submitted by county voters.

However, controversies have emerged as the so-called “audit” has come under fire, effectively being labeled as a sham. As the process has been unfolding, state lawmakers from Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Georgia have flocked to the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix, where the process is taking place, to examine how the review is being conducted.

FILE – In this May 6, 2021 file photo, Maricopa County ballots cast in the 2020 general election are examined and recounted by contractors working for Florida-based company, Cyber Ninjas at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix. For some conspiracy theorists, the 2020 election still hasn’t ended. Trump supporters are pushing to re-examine ballots from November across the country, and finding success in swing states like Arizona and Georgia. Their efforts and sometimes misleading conclusions are being gleefully amplified by the former president.

The state lawmaker went on to emphasize that the audit, if cleared, needs to be conducted by an independent party. “[There] will be mistrust if the same people that conducted the election conduct the audit,” he said.

The latest development came after Trump recently name-checked Argall and Pennsylvania Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman for their inaction in launching another audit of the 2020 election results. Although Argall has subpoena power as leader of the Senate committee, such an endeavor would require funding approved by the legislature. 

Sourse: sputniknews.com