Sep. 20, 2023
HARRISBURG – Rep. Doyle Heffley (R-Carbon) today issued the following statement regarding Gov. Josh Shapiro’s announcement yesterday to implement automatic voter registration in Pennsylvania.
“Voters in Carbon County, like all Pennsylvania voters, want fair and transparent elections. We want to be certain that all legal, registered voters are participating.
“Unfortunately, the governor’s action only adds more questions and uncertainty to an election process that is broken. Until we can say with greater certainty that all votes cast are legal votes, the discussion should focus on a holistic review of elections in the Commonwealth rather than politicians like Gov. Shapiro putting their partisan desires first.
“In the past nine months, Gov. Shapiro has consistently shed his moderate campaign rhetoric to pursue extreme, leftist policies favored by his progressive base. The governor has consistently rejected the opportunity to work in a bipartisan manner to address important issues.
“In September 2020, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court denied the Commonwealth Court the opportunity to hear and rule on election matters. In an unprecedented act of judicial activism, the Supreme Court rewrote key portions of the PA Election Code that pushed more uncertainty into the process, including eliminating signature verification and introducing unsecured drop boxes rather than keep important elements for election integrity.
“I remain committed to innovation and efficiency in our election process. However, the governor’s action undermines the linked goals of increasing voter participation and ensuring a fair and free election. To do so without explicit legislative authority from the state House and Senate is another example of a missed opportunity to move our state forward in a unified direction.”
Representative Doyle Heffley
122nd Legislative District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Melissa Fox
717-260-6522
mefox@pahousegop.com
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