Letter From Pennsylvania Republican Senator Doug Mastriano

Dear Rich,

Senator Mastriano appreciates your recent inquiry regarding his decision as Chair of the Intergovernmental Operations Committee to initiate a forensic investigation of our 2020 Election and 2021 Primary.

Millions of Pennsylvanians have serious doubts about the accuracy of the 2020 General Election. A January poll from Muhlenberg University showed that 40% of Pennsylvania voters are not confident that the results of the 2020 Election accurately reflected how Pennsylvanians voted. Discounting or mocking their concerns is neither an answer nor proper in this constitutional republic.

It should also be noted that in the weeks leading up to the election, the Department of State repeatedly altered the manner in which the Pennsylvania election would be conducted. Those who voted in person were held to a higher standard than those who mailed in their ballots.

We also must bear in mind that the 2020 Election was the first election in Pennsylvania with “mass” mail-in voting.  There were 2.7 million ballots cast by mail and absentee compared to about 263,000 absentee ballots cast in 2016. Many of these ballots were counted at offsite locations with little outside observation or oversight.

Furthermore, mail ballots without signature verification were permitted to be counted across the Commonwealth. And, of course, all of this transpired in the midst of Covid-19 where uncertainty and fear impacted the conduct of the election.

Hours before the polls opened on November 3, the department changed the rules again by providing late guidance on how to help voters whose mail-in or absentee ballots were incorrectly completed. The “guidance” resulted in inconsistent application across the Commonwealth. Some counties contacted voters as directed while others did not. There was no basis for that guidance in current or case law.

Therefore, it defies logic to assume that an election with the kinds of drastic changes we saw in 2020 was run perfectly with zero errors or fraud.

A full forensic investigation is critically necessary for our Commonwealth and for the sake of transparency and accountability. There is nothing to fear if there is nothing to hide. Those who have concerns about the integrity of the 2020 and 2021 election will have those concerns investigated and hopefully addressed. Those who think that there was zero voter fraud, no irregularities, and that the elections were conducted perfectly will have the chance to be vindicated.

The case for a forensic investigation of the 2020 general election is evident to any unbiased observer.

Senator Mastriano understands that your comments whether for or against a matter are important because he believes in always listening to the voice of the people. Because this is such an important issue, we are providing for your convenience several of Senator Mastriano’s recent interviews to provide further insight on this matter:

https://pasen.wistia.com/medias/zaij01s8jf  Forensic Investigation – (7/7/21)

Senator Mastriano also invites you to visit his website, www.senatormastriano.com so you can  stay current on the latest news.  Again, thanks for reaching out. Please do not hesitate to call regarding any state-level issue, concern, or proposed legislation you may have in the future.