May 7, 2013 2 min read

Cecil Township Supervisor Elizabeth Cowden was sitting at home Sunday night when she received a robocall asking her which municipal candidates she supports in the upcoming election and her views on the state’s new Marcellus Shale impact fee.

Moments later, she received another 17 calls from friends and Cecil Township residents asking why her name and phone number popped up on their caller IDs after they received the identical automated survey.

Cowden denied organizing the automated calls and said she’s now working with the phone company to find out who initiated them and why they were masquerading behind her name and phone number. Still, the complaints and questions from residents were so bad that she disconnected her phone after they kept streaming in Sunday night and Monday.

The phone company told her it’s the common practice of “spoofing,” and it is working to pinpoint where the robocalls originated.

“I do intend to pursue it. I see this as fraudulent activity,” Cowden said. “I think this might have been done intentionally.”

Cowden addressed the issue Monday night during Cecil Township’s voting meeting, asking how many residents had received the automated survey coming from her phone number. More than half of the 40 residents in attendance raised their hands.

She contacted township solicitor John Smith to make him aware of the robocalls. Smith Monday called Washington County Elections Director Larry Spahr after receiving several more calls from others asking if Cowden launched the automated survey.

“He was befuddled because he had received calls from various residents and public officials,” Spahr said. “He asked if we had any information on that, but this is the first time I’ve ever encountered a situation like this.”

Cowden said the phone calls from residents around Cecil Township continued Tuesday.