May 6, 2021 1 min read

Regarding your April 17 editorial, “Counties should have more time to process mail-in ballots”: There’s one problem, and it’s a big one. Scanning ballots before Election Day IS counting votes before Election Day, because scanning is counting. That’s what the device is doing when it scans. It would allow election staff to see early results and possibly leak them to political allies – unless very strong safeguards are in place, enforced by law and verified.

Thirty-four states prohibit early counting (including scanning). In the 16 states that allow it, you find various safeguards. They don’t always work though, and there have been leaks.

Sen. Steven Santarsiero’s bill, like all the other early pre-canvassing bills introduced in Pennsylvania so far, doesn’t even include any safeguards. It would open a door to an illegal behavior that is nearly impossible to detect.

(Protect Our Vote Philly has done extensive research on this, which you can find at http://precanvass.povphilly.org.)

This is a risk that’s easily avoided. Modern scanners are so fast that scanning can be done on Election Day. What’s needed is early ballot preparation, not early pre-canvassing.

Rich Garella

for Protect Our Vote Philly

Philadelphia