Philadelphia Trump supporters barred from observing ballot counting — in violation of court-order

Ian Miles Cheong
  |   November 05, 2020   |   Be the first to comment

UPDATE: The media spokesman for OSCE/ODIHR, the international team of election observers, just told Rebel Commander Ezra Levant that their delegation has been denied access to the vote counting going on in Philadelphia.

(November 5, 12:27pm ET) The city of Philadelphia, PA is the site of one of the most contentious results in US election history, and legal observers permitted to observe vote counting are reportedly being barred from viewing the process in violation of a court order.

First Amendment lawyer Ron Coleman, who is part of the Trump legal team, posted on Twitter that the team and independent poll watchers were being barred from ballot counting.

The court order was issued in Philadelphia allowing observers to view ballot counting within six feet following efforts by Trump campaign to gain access to ballot counting centers.

Jason Miller, a senior advisor to the Trump 2020 campaign, posted details of the order. The order reverses a motion by the Philadelphia County Board of Elections and the Pennsylvania Democratic Party to restrict access to observers, and permits candidates, watchers, and candidate representatives to be permitted to be present for the canvassing process.

The move to allow poll watchers to be present follows allegations that the Democrats have been tampering with votes in key areas that will determine the state of the US 2020 election, it also comes just after Trump won a legal victory in the battleground state, where an appellate judge awarded the Trump campaign the right to observe the counting of ballots.

The Trump campaign first filed legal actions in the Keystone State on Wednesday, making a request that vote counts be stopped until better access was provided for Republican observers at polling stations.

Speaking to reporters during a call on Thursday morning, Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien said the ruling would also allow for a review of counting that has already occurred.

“The media and the insiders is in the city, they’ve been trying to count Donald Trump out for years,” Stepien said to the reporters on the call. “Donald Trump is alive and well.”

The president has seen a 400,000 ballot lead in Pennsylvania on Wednesday, but that lead slowly decreased as more mail-in ballots were tabulated, shrinking that total down to 135,000 votes.

With both Trump and Biden campaigns declaring victory in Pennsylvania before the official count has concluded, the state has become a key focal point for both parties, with a precious 20 electoral college votes dangling in the balance.

A loss in Pennsylvania would very likely sink the chances for the re-election of President Trump. Stepien, however, remained confident.

“We will win Pennsylvania. I have as much confidence today as I had yesterday. We also won a major victory in Pennsylvania this morning that helps ensure the transparency and openness that Pennsylvania deserves is held true,” Stepien added.

Ian Miles Cheong

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Ian Miles Cheong is a freelance writer, graphic designer, journalist and videographer. He’s kind of a big deal on Twitter.

https://twitter.com/stillgray

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