A federal judge on Thursday nixed a bid from President Trump’s campaign to stop the vote include in Philadelphia over claims that his allies weren’t being allowed to monitor the counting of mail-in polling forms.
US District Judge Paul Diamond rather asked the different sides to go to an understanding, proposing each party be allowed 60 eyewitnesses inside a hall at a midtown assembly hall where the last voting forms are being counted.
“Truly, wouldn’t we be able to be dependable adults here and agree?” the exasperated judge asked. “The entire thing could (soon) be disputable.”
Republicans had filed an emergency lawsuit asserting election officials in the Democratic-drove city were declining to agree to a court request they’d won before in the day that said campaign operatives observe the process from six feet away.
As the hearing before Diamond, a George W. Bush appointee, unfolded on Thursday evening, Trump and Joe Biden were locked in a tight battle for Pennsylvania’s 20 electoral votes.
Trump held 50.12 percent of the tallied Keystone State vote compared to Biden’s 48.73 percent, with 88 percent tabulated.
But hefty chunks of the uncounted ballots were in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh’s Allegheny County, whose mail-in ballots figure to skew toward Biden.
While Philadelphia is still chugging along, Allegheny County workers were given Thursday off to prepare for what could be several more days of counting.
Kathy Boockvar, Pennsylvania’s secretary of state, has said, however, that clarity could come Friday.
