President Donald Trump’s campaign is ready to file a lawsuit over poll watchers against Philadelphia´s City. The campaign holds that they will file suit that if unless registered poll monitors are permitted to observe the voting process in Philadelphia’s new satellite election offices.
According to WHYY, Philly-based lawyer Linda Kerns accused the commissioners of denying the Trump campaign the right to have poll watchers monitor the casting of ballots.
Kerns, who represents the Trump campaign, wrote that fair elections require transparency and accountability. “All voters deserve as much,” she wrote in a letter to Philadelphia commissioners.
You can read: The first seven satellite early voting offices begin operations in Philadelphia
She said that Tuesday, election officials denied access to registered poll watchers at the satellite offices. The campaign argues that the satellite offices constitute polling places; therefore poll monitors should have full access to these taxpayer-funded locations.
“No one questions that Philadelphians are voting at these locations,” Kearns wrote. “Accordingly, the denial to the campaign of watchers lacks any rational basis. And it deprives the campaign of its right to monitor the process.”
During the presidential debate against Joe Biden, Trump claimed that poll watchers had been blocked from observing the voting process in Philadelphia. However, Philadelphia officials reportedly have not have yet issued any certificates to poll watchers from the Trump campaign.
No polling places, no poll watchers
According to WHYY, the commissioners contend that the seven satellite election offices are not polling places. Therefore, poll watchers have no right to be there.
“It is a temporary election office where services are available to citizens who would like to register to vote or request their mail-in ballot,” Commissioner Lisa Deeley told WHYY. “They can vote their mail-in ballot there or they can take it home and vote it at their dining room table.”
The seven satellite election offices allow residents to register to vote and request and submit a mail-in ballot. Voters also are able to drop off completed ballots ahead of the Nov. 3 election.