Election category, Page 127
Lawsuit seeks to ensure all mail-in ballots are counted
A federal lawsuit aims to ensure that legitimate ballots don’t get tossed out because of bad penmanship as record-high numbers of Pennsylvanians opt to vote by mail in the November presidential election. The suit seeks to force election officials in Allegheny County and statewide to implement changes that give voters...
Why choice of running mate matters more than usual this year
NEW YORK — For all the secrecy and speculation that typically surrounds the search for a vice presidential candidate, the decision rarely sways an election. But ahead of Joe Biden’s imminent announcement, this year could be different. At a minimum, the decision will shift the force of the campaign —...
Postal Service emerges as flash point heading into election
WASHINGTON — Mail piling up. Constant attacks from the president. Cuts to overtime as record numbers of ballots are expected to pass through post offices this fall. The success of the 2020 presidential election could hinge on a most unlikely government agency: the U.S. Postal Service. Current signs are not...
U.S. officials: Russia denigrating Biden ahead of election; China against Trump
WASHINGTON — U.S. intelligence officials believe that Russia is using a variety of measures to denigrate Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden ahead of the November election and that individuals linked to the Kremlin are boosting President Donald Trump’s reelection bid, the country’s counterintelligence chief said Friday. U.S. officials also believe...
Westmoreland election director resigns 3 months out from election day
Westmoreland County officials Monday confirmed the resignation of the elections bureau director, a move that comes as preparations continue for the presidential general election just three months away. Commissioner Doug Chew said Beth Lechman last week notified county leaders of her decision to exit the job she has held since...
Clock is ticking on Trump comeback as early voting nears
WASHINGTON — It’s getting late early. President Donald Trump is privately reassuring Republicans anxious about his deficits to Democrat Joe Biden, noting there are three months until Election Day and reminding them of the late-breaking events that propelled his 2016 comeback. But four years later, the dynamics are very different....
Despite virus threat, Black voters wary of voting by mail
DETROIT — Despite fears that the coronavirus pandemic will worsen, Victor Gibson said he’s not planning to take advantage of Michigan’s expanded vote-by-mail system when he casts his ballot in November. The retired teacher from Detroit just isn’t sure he can trust it. Many Black Americans share similar concerns and...
Here’s how Trump’s opposition to mail voting hurts the GOP
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Republicans once dominated voting by mail in Florida. But that was before President Donald Trump got involved. After months of hearing Trump denigrate mail-in balloting, Republicans in the critical battleground state now find themselves far behind Democrats in the perennial push to urge their voters to cast...
Wealthy donors pour millions into fight over mail-in voting
WASHINGTON — Deep-pocketed and often anonymous donors are pouring over $100 million into an intensifying dispute about whether it should be easier to vote by mail, a fight that could determine President Donald Trump’s fate in the November election. In the battleground of Wisconsin, cash-strapped cities have received $6.3 million...
AP-NORC poll: U.S. course at record low, Trump sinks on coronavirusVideo
WASHINGTON — With the November election 100 days away, more Americans say the country is heading in the wrong direction than at any previous point in Donald Trump’s presidency, putting the incumbent in a perilous position as his reelection bid against Democrat Joe Biden enters a pivotal stretch. A new...
Election experts warn of November disaster
WASHINGTON — After a presidential primary season plagued by long lines, confusion over mail-in voting and malfunctioning equipment, election experts are increasingly concerned about the resiliency of American democracy in the face of a global pandemic. With four months until the presidential election, the litany of unresolved issues could block...
Mississippi could drop Jim Crow-era statewide voting process
JACKSON, Miss. — Mississippi just ditched its Confederate-themed state flag. Later this year, the state’s voters will decide whether to dump a statewide election process that dates to the Jim Crow era. Facing pressure from a lawsuit and the possibility of action from a federal judge, legislators are putting a...
Supreme Court blocks curbside voting in Alabama
MONTGOMERY, Ala. —The U.S. Supreme Court in a 5-4 decision Thursday blocked a lower court ruling allowing curbside voting in Alabama and waiving some absentee ballot requirements during the COVID-19 pandemic. Conservative justices granted Alabama’s request to stay a federal judge’s order that would allow local officials to offer curbside...
Trump campaign sues over mail-in drop-off sites for ballots in Pa.
HARRISBURG — President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign, the national Republican Party and four Western Pennsylvania members of Congress sued Monday to force changes to how the state collects and counts mail-in ballots under revamped rules. The federal lawsuit filed in Pittsburgh claims that as voters jumped to make use of...
Trump zeroes in on base to overcome reelection obstacles
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is sharpening his focus on his most ardent base of supporters as concern grows inside his campaign that his standing in the battleground states that will decide the 2020 election is slipping. Trump turned his attention this week to “left wing mobs” toppling Confederate monuments...
California voters will be asked whether to restore affirmative action in November
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California could allow college admissions and government contracting decisions with a focus on race and gender diversity under a measure placed on the November ballot Wednesday, a decision that would reverse strict limits imposed by voters in 1996. The ballot measure, which won final approval from the...
2 Republicans opposed by Trump win in North Carolina, Kentucky
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Voters rebuffed President Donald Trump and nominated two Republicans he opposed to House seats from North Carolina and Kentucky on Tuesday. Calls in higher-profile races in Kentucky and New York faced days of delay as swamped officials count mountains of mail-in ballots. In western North Carolina, GOP...
Westmoreland expects hand-counting of primary ballots to be finished soon
Hand-counting of more than 1,200 provisional primary ballots cast should be completed Wednesday, according to the Westmoreland Elections Bureau. “We expect about 75% will be counted and accepted,” director Beth Lechman said. Provisional ballots were used at the polls in the June 2 primary by voters who were not eligible...
Biden formally clinches Democratic presidential nomination
WASHINGTON — Joe Biden has formally clinched the Democratic presidential nomination, setting him up for a bruising challenge to President Donald Trump that will play out against the unprecedented backdrop of a pandemic, economic collapse and civil unrest. “It was an honor to compete alongside one of the most talented...
Mail ballots from Tuesday’s election push Biden over the top
WASHINGTON — After primaries and caucuses in 42 states and the District of Columbia, Joe Biden has won the last few delegates needed to clinch the Democratic nomination for president as states worked to tally a surge of mail ballots. Indiana, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island were among the seven states,...
Lawyer says ex-Minneapolis cop Derek Chauvin illegally voted in Florida
ORLANDO, Fla. — A man running for election supervisor in Pinellas County is asking the Orange-Osceola state attorney to pursue charges against Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer accused of killing George Floyd, alleging he voted illegally in two Florida elections. Dan Helm, a Democrat and attorney, sent Orange-Osceola...
Vote counting drags into 3rd day after Pennsylvania primary
HARRISBURG — Counting an avalanche of 1.4 million mail-in votes dragged into a third day in Pennsylvania on Thursday as some races from Tuesday’s primary remained too close to call. The Associated Press has not yet called a number of races where the contest was close or had a large...
Westmoreland officials look to improve election process as last mail-in ballots are counted
As the counting of absentee primary ballots continued Wednesday, Westmoreland County officials said a plan to improve the speed of reporting election results is a top priority before the November general election. More than 40,000 mail-in ballots were received this spring for an election with no contested races during a...
With wins in 7 states and D.C., Biden closes in on nominationVideo
Joe Biden is on the cusp of formally securing the Democratic presidential nomination after winning hundreds more delegates in primary contests that tested the nation’s ability to run elections while balancing a pandemic and sweeping social unrest. Biden could lock down the nomination within the next week as West Virginia...
Election Day roundup — latest results in state, region, county
Below are preliminary election results from contested races in the state, region and county during the June 2, 2020 primary: STATE Auditor General Democrats (with 91.04% of precincts reporting): Michael Lamb, Pittsburgh’s Mt. Washington: 33.7% Nina Ahmad, Philadelphia: 28.5% Christina Hartman, Lancaster County: 12.6% H. Scott Conklin, Centre County: 9.7%...
