A huge thank you goes to all candidates who had the courage to place their names on a ballot.
In the running for office, candidates opened themselves up to public examination, often at great personal sacrifice. To be a candidate or hold office is to give up time and energy, to spend time away from family, to knock on doors, develop campaign-material and strategies, attend community gatherings and forums, and to subject oneself to being questioned each step of the way – all this without any guarantee of success.
When the polls closed in Chester County and the in-person ballots were counted on Tuesday, November 2, most of the school board and supervisor races in Tredyffrin and Easttown indicated Republican candidates leading. However, when Chester County Voter Services began processing the mail-in and absentee ballots, the numbers began to reverse with Democrats leading in most of the local races.
A computer glitch caused a delay in processing the ballots and we only learned overnight the final numbers from Voter Services. Although the results are not officially certified, Democrats won in the Tredyffrin and Easttown supervisor and school board races.
To the candidates who prevailed in our local races, congratulations! As you take office during these challenging times, my best wishes for success as you serve our community and its residents.
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The unofficial results in local races are below.
TE School Board election results:
There were no incumbents for the TE School Board. In Region One, Yolanda Allen (D) defeated Leslie Elken (R), 2,848 votes to 2,256 votes. In Region Two, Robert Singh (D) defeated Deana Wang (R), 2,494 votes to 2,000 votes. In Region Three, Democrats Maryann Piccioni and Susan Audrain received 27 percent and 26 percent of the vote respectively, defeating Republican candidates Rachel Kill and Bill Nolan.
Tredyffrin Township Board of Supervisor election results:
In the two At-Large supervisor races, incumbents Matt Holt (D) and Murph Wysocki (D) received 29 percent and 27 percent of the vote respectively, defeating Republican candidates Sean Sweeney and Jim Zdancewicz. In the 2nd Middle District, Democrat David Miller received 60 percent of the vote, defeating Nick Sarracino (R).
Easttown Township Board of Supervisor election results:
There were no incumbents for the Easttown Board of Supervisors. Democrats Eric Unger and Alex Bosco received 1,988 and 1,863 votes respectively, defeating Republican candidates Jay Jennings and Alessandra Nicolas who received 1,819 and 1,801 votes respectively.
Magisterial District Judge District 15-4-01 (area include Tredyffrin Township and East Whiteland Township) election results:
Lauren Holt (D) received 5,273 votes, defeating Republican candidate Gene Twardowski, who received 3,363 votes.
Magisterial District Judge District 15-1-02 (area includes Tredyffrin Township, Malvern and West Chester) election results:
This race may be too close to call. Current numbers indicate that incumbent Judge Tom Tartaglio (R) has 9,439 votes and is trailing his challenger Mackenzie Smith (D) who has 9,561 votes.
I predicted this outcome here months ago. The Republican party has become toxic in T/E, largely because of the lack of civility. I would prefer to have two good parties so that I have a real choice between candidates, but that will not be possible until local officials realize they cannot put up radicalized, unpleasant, cruel candidates who speak with utter contempt towards those they do not agree with, who hang out with Jan. 6 rioters, who engage in conspiracy theorizing, and who refuse to comply with rules established by the leaders chosen through the democratic process about how to conduct themselves in public meetings. Republicans, you could have won local races if you had acted with civility and respect. Why should we trust you to follow rules/laws/procedure in office, when you can’t do such a simple thing as behaving in a public meeting?
(And don’t tell me the other side does it too. That is a poor argument. Yes, there are hypocrites out there. I am not one of them. Some of us are consistent. I absolutely and unequivocally oppose uncivility on both sides, but only one side is behaving that way in T/E).
If you believe that the Tredyffrin Democrats are civil, you obviously don’t follow the TTDEM’s Facebook page. They have been spreading lies and innuendo like crazy towards the end of the campaign. Actually, it appears that you do as you are seem to be in on the conspiracy theory about the one photo. Would it be fair and right to have people publish a photo of Kyle Boyer with the pastor at his old church and then say that Kyle Boyer is anti-gay and doesn’t believe in gay rights because that church speaks out against homosexuality? Of course not! But that won’t stop you from doing the same thing to other people.
During the campaign, I am not aware of one Republican candidate who acted in the way that you mention above.
You also probably don’t know that the TE administration and school board have been bullying the special education parent group BUILD for the past few years. When BUILD pushed to become more engaged in the elementary school curriculum and became vocal about it, in short order 1) the school district called the police on children of 3/4 of the leadership of BUILD for ridiculous reasons, 2) passed a policy change to stop leaders of organizations like BUILD from speaking as an organization at school board and committee meetings, 3) pass a policy change to now allow BUILD to represent parents at a child’s special education meetings anymore, and 4) blame special education in the past for massive increases in special education spending when in fact that massive increase was due to fraudulent accounting by the Business Manager, Art McDonnell.
During all of this, the school board was either silent or making excuses for this behavior from the administration. For instance, they said that the policy changes were for “clarification” about only one person speaking at a meeting or only one person being allowed as an advocate at a child’s special education meeting. For decades the school board had no issue with presidents of parent groups speaking on behalf of their organization to thank them for this or that. As soon as one parent group started to speak out publicly in a critical manner, the school board all of a sudden had an issue. That wasn’t about policy, it was about the content of what was said. Likewise for special education meetings, a single lawyer has always had the right to say that they represent a law firm at those meetings and they still do. But somehow, parent organizations must have that right removed.
Doug, I’m curious what lies and innuendo you thought the TTDems spread. It’s a fact that TTGOP leadership, Deana Wang and Nick Sarracino got selfies taken with Scott Presler. Many members of the Conservative Women of the Main Line group did as well, holding campaign stickers for various GOP candidates. I’ve heard through the grapevine that folks in those photos, which they displayed on their social media for months, feel they were mistreated or somehow slandered. That they “didn’t know” who Presler was. Savvy Mainline reached out to TTGOP leadership multiple times for explanations. None was forthcoming, and that photo immediately disappeared from all GOP social media, both the TTGOP page and Nick Sarracion’s social media. It’s absurd to claim that TTGOP leadership don’t know what kind of politics CWML practices. They’ve invited speakers who were insurrectionists, or associated with Turning Point USA. One of their key people was repsonsible for sending the email for “Neighbors United,” a group which will not name its members, and which spewed a bunch of School Board lies late in the game. The School Board candidates also accepted endorsements from Keeping Kids in Schools PAC, which endorsed QAnon follower Ada Nestor among others. All of these local leaders and candidates deliberately chose to associate with questionable, bigoted, or hateful ideas. They knew full well what they were doing. Now that they’ve been outed and lost, they’re sad. Hardball politics can be unpleasant, but when you have a party openly welcoming in anit-Muslim activists, insurrectionists, and Stop the Steal conspirators, I think it’s warranted.
Thank you; I was sent Carla’s Chester County Ramblings with the photos (not just 1 but 2) of the GOP TESD candidates. What was equally disturbing is that the TTGOP Chair was front & center in one of the photos. As a republican (still) it’s very difficult for me to vote for candidates like them.
Doug, still waiting to hear specifics on the “lies and innuendo.”
Here is the thing Doug. Wealthy liberal mainliners live in a bubble. They haven’t felt any pain yet, but their divisive policies of racial politics, increasing crime, profligate spending, rampant inflation, shortages, especially energy, gender confusion, censorship, and general moral degeneration, corruption, all supported by their media allies means that they will eventually feel the pain too. The question then becomes, will it be too late to save the country from approaching tyranny?
Totally agree that we “wealthy liberal mainliners live in a bubble.” If you don’t like the bubble, you could leave or change it, if you can. When I first moved here it was “wealthy, GOP mainliners” who lived here in the bubble. That was okay appparently, but now you feel cheated. I have seen two generations go through the T/E school system. None of the first generation are communists, none of them are profligate spenders, and all of them are highly ethical and moral human beings. Great school system. Great place to live, then and now.
I agree with you Annie. TESD had a great reputation with a great curriculum.
Only until recently, the past 3-4 years, did they CHANGE the Curriculum to reflect a very liberal, left wing agenda. Only with COVID and remote learning did parents get a chance to actually hear what was being presented to their kids. Also, the PTO is now run by very liberal people who have their own political agenda. They think its ok to push their views onto everyone with their very liberal speakers etc. These are facts, not emoting.
Did your kids have to complete a survey while in Stoga trying to highlight their “white privilege”. Instead of focusing on Math, Reading, Science etc, TESD is pushing a political agenda on our kids.
And notice, I did not mention CRT. To me that is a diversion. The fact is, TESD changed the established, successful curriculum–without providing examples of how this new curriculum will continue to get our kids into premier colleges.
They have hired new administrators in the curriculum department. They changed the curriculum based upon a liberal, some may say, “activist” school board with a political agenda. I could go on with more but, I’ll stop there.
Like most TE parents, I’m busy and I value a good, quality education. But when that education is infiltrated with a political agenda, you can not remain silent.
You and your kids did not have to deal with this.
Parents, you don’t want your kids indoctrinated? Get your kids out of public schools! You want them to grow up to be good Communists? Leave them where they are.
Sadly Samuel, the tyranny is already here, facilitated by wealthy liberals who ease the conflict between their entitlement, greed, and wealth AND their need to portray themselves as benign, caring people which they do by adopting liberal/progressive views and attacking genuine conservative leaning people because the latter exemplify what the liberal progressives are only pretending to be. Liberals know they are a lie
Your party touts “inclusiveness” but yet names calls parents as “domestic terrorists”. They put signs all over TE to “keep TE safe” safe from who? Parents who are willing to stand up for transparency? Parents who want better fiscal management? I have had little to no representation for the last 8 years we’ve been in the district. And I won’t get into the slurry of bullying, name calling and judgements of my children for trying to advocate for them.
Mud is slung on both sides, no one deserves to put their party on a pedestal as better than the other, both side are an embarrassment, posting “f@ck the unvaccinated” isn’t very becoming either ;) so really neither party is behaving with civility.
I only knew a few of the candidates that ran in person and they were not as Parent of 2020 grads describes. Perhaps I don’t know them as well as he/she does. However I find the “anonymous” post-election comments by her/him to be the very type of caustic post-game taunting which he/she is decrying. I’m sorry that he/she has encountered people whom are “radicalized, unpleasant and cruel”. I don’t doubt there are some out there. But the vast majority of Republicans whom I know not only are civil, courteous, and friendly but would decry such behavior among their peers in an instant. Congrats by the way to the Democratic candidates who won their seats. I hope, pray and am sure they will govern in a “what is best for all T/E residents manner”!
Do you not find it ironic that the tide turns on the mysterious “mail in ballots”? Is there a specific reason Dems can’t seem to make it to vote in person at polling sites on Election Day…only feeds the doubters. I actually prefer those that are transparent v wolves in sheeps clothng who thrive on back room deals like our Dem School Board and other Boards regardless of the public “civility”.
Just for clarification, the Pennsylvania Republican majority Senate and House are responsible for the mail in ballot change that came before the pandemic. There is nothing mysterious about mail in ballots.
No, “Sceptical”, I do NOT find it mysterious re. mail in ballots. Dems – or ANYONE – who wishes to vote by mail should not need a reason.
Sceptical, no. Mail in ballots are not mysterious. They are the law of Pennsylvania. Because Donald Trump thoroughly discredited mail-in votes with Republicans, in an effort to claim fraud in 2020, mail-in voting, at least in PA, breaks about 3:1 Democratic. The result is the “Red Mirage,” Republican candidates “leading” on Election Day because the in-person vote skews Republican, then the final tally including all the D votes by mail. Is there a specific reason Reps can’t seem to figure out how to use mail-in voting? Washington state is 100% mail-in, they figured it out there.
Martin,
I don’t think it’s very “nice” to say “Reps can’t figure out how to use mail-in voting”. I think it’s a preference and with the state of the USPS I don’t blame some folks for wanting to cast their ballot in person, no matter their party affiliation.
I agree many states do a nice job with mail in ballots and have been doing so for years. That’s the rub though, they have been doing it for a while. Due to Covid, mail in ballots were rushed into place in many states so I can understand why some folks may be skeptical of the infrastructure in place to distribute, collect and count them accurately and legally.
I do have to say I think we have a problem with our voter roles needing a cleanup if we do move to more people voting my mail. At my voting location on Tuesday I noticed my oldest child’s name 2 above mine in the book. She moved out of the area to another state 3 years ago where she is actively voting! She submitted the “official” form to be removed from PA over a year and a half ago! I questioned the poll worker and they stated that “id was required” as printed near her name on the page if she were to come in to vote. She shouldn’t even be on the book, she should have been removed over a year ago!!
Tina — you’re right, it’s not nice. I actually don’t think that about Republican voters. I was poking back at the absurdity of “Sceptical” saying “Dems can’t seem to make it to the polling place.” That makes no more sense than saying Rs can’t figure out mail-in ballots. It’s a choice, and disparaging either side for their choice doesn’t make sense. That’s the point I was trying to make. I do agree that it takes a while to get the kinks out of vote by mail systems. Only way to work them out is by doing it!
Mark,
Once again, a local election is determined because of national politics? If not because of the Orange Man, 1/6. Ignore all the local issues? Dem party & national media (one and the same)know how to manipulate the TE voters, hook, line & sinker.
MSNBC, CNN want to thank you for being loyal viewers and believing everything they broadcast!
I am the Judge of Elections for Tredyffrin W-2. There is nothing mysterious about the mail-in ballots. The poll books identify each voter who requested a mail-in ballot and, if the voter returned the ballot, so indicate. The County also sends us a separate list of each voter who requested a mail-in ballot. That list contains the name of each voter, the voter’s address, the date the voter requested the mail-in ballot, the date the County mailed the ballot to the voter and, if the voter returned the ballot, the date the County received it. The list is a public record, so if my word does not cure your skepticism, go to the Chester County Voter Services office and ask to see it.
Steve,
I have no doubt that the majority of the townships and counties have a secure and accurate mail in ballot process in place, TE included. Especially with a “small” election cycle as we just went through. The concern lies with the larger general elections, the security of the mail in ballots, whom they are distributed to etc. Some states mail them out whether requested on not, so glad PA does not do this. I have no problem with mail-in ballots, I just they should be requested, secured when returned, and poll watchers able to review the process and the counting.
So Steve, since you are a Judge of Elections, maybe you can help me understand why a previous voter and resident of the state who filed the appropriate paper work to be removed from the PA voter rolls almost 2 years ago, is still on the rolls?
Thank you!
Tina,
The Judge of Elections and other poll workers do not maintain the voting rolls — the County does — so I cannot address your specific issue. I strongly encourage you to call Chester County Voter Services (610-344-6410) to report the problem and find out why the removal was not processed. I would be very interested to hear what they have to say, so please report back with what you learn.
What I can tell you is that, in 2016, Pennsylvania joined the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC). ERIC collects voter information from participating states and analyzes it to search for any problems, including identifying voters who may have multiple registrations dues to moves. Unfortunately, 19 states do not yet participate. More information is available here: https://ericstates.org/
Steve,
Thanks for the info. I’ll have my daughter follow up.
Appreciate it!
I’ll give you all the advice I would give to Virginia democrats: when you lose an election, listen. You have your perspective, other people see things differently. Genuine listening does not involve immediately telling people they are wrong because a, b, c. It starts with curiosity about why someone might have a different feeling about things than you do.
But if you all would rather keep losing, then go right ahead. If T/E republicans can’t win this year, when republicans did well in so many places, I give them little chance in the foreseeable future. Party realignment is changed the balance of power significantly in T/E. On the other hand, it’s entirely possible democrats will manage to wrench defeat from victory, as that’s something they’re pretty good at. But my suggestion is to start playing down the local party’s connection to Trump, by, say, not having candidates take chummy photographs with stop the steal figures, and by not making comments that imply the Dems are cheating by relying on the entirely legal vote by ballot process.
The school board and the township need to freeze taxes at this year’s level for 5 years. After that, they need to cut taxes 2% a year for 10 years.
Tom, if they were to do that they would ALSO have to either a) freeze enrollment so that no new kids were added in that period, except that by law they have to provide an education to all kids in the District, or b) get funding from the state to cover increased costs from higher enrollment or c) hold a really big bake sale. In all seriousness, costs will not stop going up, so if you don’t want to cover it with taxes, there needs to be some other alternative.
At this point, the fact that our children’s education is dictated by a woke leftist agenda is a JOKE. I wish our children were not in the hands of any party at this point but especially the progressive, woke Democratic Party. The are the most hypocritical of all. The republicans are the lesser of two evils. It all makes me sick. Time to get our kids out of TESD.
Thank you Pattye for your steadfast coverage of these important local elections. While I’m not certain that much will change as a result, I am hopeful that T/E’s newest school board members will take a more critical eye to the district’s finances going forward in an effort to reduce the endless upward momentum of our property taxes.
TE & Virtue Signaling
On a local, VF neighborhood blog, a woman posted congrats for Diwali Day. I too sincerely wish our Indian neighbors a Happy Diwali. I only hope they look closer and ask themselves why, why now would someone post Happy Diwali–it’s never been posted before–the same person with the post, also reminds voters to send in their mail in ballots.
But the same person doesn’t recognize our muslim neighbor’s holidays such as Ramadan. She doesn’t recognize Jewish holidays nor recognize Christian holidays–heck no.
I’m pointing this out because it relates to our local elections. You have people affiliated with a political party, pandering to certain neighbors. I only wish those neighbors recognize it for what it is–virtue signaling and pandering.
Wake up TE, you’re being played.
Good people on both sides of the aisle need to seriously think about the negative impact mail in and early voting has on people’s perception of the integrity of the election process. While the results here may be legitimate, the fact that the non in-person ballots swung the count so much, combined with the report of a “computer glitch” and an end result that is inconsistent with GOP dominance in other parts of the country, all put a shadow over the process that doesn’t need to be there.
Twice a year, we should come together to vote in person on the same day, not only to maximize faith in the process, but also to share an act of civic duty. The convenience of “mailing it in” is not worth the harm that it is causing.
Concerned: I will leave it to others to debate the merits of mail-in voting, but I disagree with the notion that the results in Chester County were inconsistent with the results elsewhere. For example, each of the Republican candidates for the county row offices performed several percentage points better in 2021 than their counterparts in 2017. Although the improved performance of each Republican candidate was not sufficient to flip the seats, it was consistent with the larger trend.
Steve, as a Judge of Elections, I would think you would be concerned with the integrity of elections. Since you have insights regarding Chester County voting as it relates to Nov, 2021, please let us know why the “computer glitch” occurred and why did it occur when it did and ultimately, how did it affect the counting of the votes.
The County did not report any “glitch” to us poll workers. The only place I saw such a reference was in Pattye’s post. Perhaps she can provide the source of her information and any additional details she may have.
In any event, the County processes the mail-in ballots, not the individual polling places, so poll workers like me would have no information about any processing issues. I encourage you to call Chester County Voter Services (610-344-6410) if you have any questions or concerns about the process.
And you are correct — I do care about the integrity of elections. That is why I am glad the election code permits representatives of each candidate and political party to observe the processing of mail-in ballots. See Act 77, Section 1308(g)(2) (https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/li/uconsCheck.cfm?yr=2019&sessInd=0&act=77). If any issues arose during the processing of the mail-in ballots, the representatives of the candidates and the parties who were in the room during the count surely would make it known. The fact that they have reported no issues gives me comfort in the integrity of the process.
Before I wrote the voter results post, I had heard from several residents that there was a “computer glitch” at voter services which caused the delay in results. When I asked how they knew, I was sent copies of an email blast that came from Hans van Mol, chairman of the Tredyffrin Twp Democratic Committee dated Nov. 4.
The statement from Von Mol titled “2021 Results 2: Democrats Take Tredyffrin” still appears on their website. In the first paragraph of the statement, van Mol writes, “Well, it’s a good thing I stay up late because at 12:38am, Chester County Voter Services has finally posted an update on the vote count. We’ve learned the delay on Wednesday was due to a software glitch that required a complete rescan of all 11,000 remaining ballots….”
I voted by mail in ballot, no mystery about it. I also worked at my polling place ALL DAY. Why? because I felt like doing so.
Agree Concerned Voter—Yes, we all deserve to have our legitimate vote count.
Speaking of that, EVERY Republican was up in the count late Tuesday night. Mysteriously, we wake up Wednesday morning and ALL the Dems won. Mmm. ALL the Republican seats were flipped simultaneously?!?! How is that even statistically possible?
All I know is the Dems in the area have a “checkered” history –just Google “Philadelphia Politicians Indicted”
39 and counting in the past 15 years.
Why did the DEMS push the Mail in Voting when COVID-19 is at an all time low? Vaccination rate for TE area is above 70%. They tell everyone wear a mask, yet they can’t wear a mask to vote? Anyone who can think critically, knows something is not right.
The citizens of TE demand an explanation–besides, “computer glitch”.
Wake up TE, you’re being played.
NSP: it isn’t complicated. Donald Trump planted a seed with Republican voters that mail-in voting is somehow tainted. He did this so that he could claim electoral fraud. In any case he was very successful, such that Democrats vote mail-in much more heavily than Republican in Chester County, to the tune of 3 to 1. Meaning, out of every 100 people who request a mail ballot, 75 are Dems. That means that the walk-in vote skews Republican. This means that for any race where the Democrat does not absolutely crush the Republican, the Rs will be ahead on Election Day, guaranteed. And the mail-ins, 3:1 Democratic, will provide the margin of victory. Fact is, the Rs deliberately encouraged a partisan skew to mail-in to stoke exactly these kinds of claims. No seats were “flipped.” The day-of count favors Republicans because Republican voters significantly outnumber Dems on Election Day. The mail-in ballots add in many more Democratic votes than Republican ones. In the end, it doesn’t matter which method people use to vote. When you add them all up, at least in Tredyffrin, Dems win because more people vote for them. It’s not mysterious.
There’s no mystery or conspiracy. Mail in ballots are convenient and strictly accounted for in the voting system. How do I know? I’m a poll worker and have received extensive training. I also vote by mail in ballot because it’s convenient. I’m an independent voter, research the candidates and vote for whomever I think is most qualified. This year I voted for both Democrat and Republican school board candidates.
If you have doubts about mail in ballots, I encourage you to volunteer as a poll worker. It’s a great wau to serve your community.
Again, those of us that are truly skeptical of the security and processing of mail in ballots in PA would agree that the issues may not be out here in the burbs, our concern lies in the cities at least mine does. And everyone, please stop invoking Trump with this issue, anyone with half a brain saw that the security, processing and overseeing of the count in Philadelphia was “lacking” to say the least. When I lived in the city we used to say, “Philadelphia- where the streets are dirty and the politics is even dirtier”.
Finally, when our own governor broke the law this election cycle by having his wife “drop off” his ballot, we can be concerned. We just want everyone to follow the rules.
NSP, just to be clear every republican was NOT up on election night. I for one was ahead Tuesday evening when the in-person votes were counted. Please get your information correct before you post on important topics.
Correction noted David.
Since voting information is indeed important, and we can agree, voter integrity is crucial for all voters. As a member of TE’s Democratic party, and Supervisor-elect, please provide information regarding the “computer/software glitch”. I’m sure you would agree, transparency is necessary to maintain the integrity of the election.
From my understanding, Chester County Voter Services “discovered a few issues which involved USB sticks, uploads, and scans” as it relates to Tuesday’s election. I’m sure you would know more than me and can provide the community further details.
Thanks in advance David.
It’s always about Trump, right Martin? Especially when it comes to LOCAL issues.
To verify, Dems had lawn signs encouraging voters to vote by mail, not Trump. These are the same people who demanded masks for children to wear in schools–although the SCIENCE did not show Covid issues with that age group.
Yet, we all complied and even got our kids vaccinated. But No, you still need to vote by mail? Why? Your “explanation” has some serious holes.
Oh, Martin, please explain away the “computer glitch”.
By the way, from your previous post, still waiting for your explanation why the German people are so good at reconciling their past when compared to the American people….this should be good.
Hi, “Explain.” I’m a little puzzled, but I’ll try to explain. To my knowledge there was no partisan skew to vote by mail balloting before Trump started badmouthing it. Now there IS a partisan skew: at least in Chester County, Democrats are three times more likely to request a mail ballot than Republicans. Those are verifiable facts.
I don’t understand the reference to lawn sins. Yes, Dems had signs encouraging people to vote by mail because they think it’s a good idea. (Which is is, it’s known to increase turnout for both parties.) You seem to want to draw some connection between vote by mail and Covid but I don’t quite get that. Dems don’t encourage people to VBM because of Covid. They do so because it increases voter participation overall, and has been known to do so for decades. I’m not sure what it is you think I’m trying to explain. Covid is one good reason to vote by mail, but there are many others.
Chester County Voter Services has issued updates about the vote count, along with descriptions of the issues encountered with their technology. I don’t see that anything needs to be explained away.
I’m not sure what the context is for your question about German attitudes toward their past vs. American ones but it’s a great question. To me the answer lies in the simple fact that Germany reckoned honestly with its past, and takes truth seriously. The US has not. Case in point, large numbers of people still insist the Civil War was not about slavery. To take it locally, people come to School Board meetings protesting DEI initiatives meant to shed light on the nature of racism in America. They don’t want it taught. Germany criminalized Holocaust denial. Much as I dislike criminalizing speech, in that case I think it was justified. Cheers.
Martin, you paint with a broad brush–little facts, lot of spin.
You posted a comment two months ago about how the Germans reconciled its past–but Americans did not. With no details. When pressed for details, you ignored it.
Your explanation now ignores the fact the VAST majority of Americans accept the results and why we fought the Civil War. In fact, there are residents of TE whose ancestors fought for the Union, freeing the slaves. In 1968, the Civil Rights Act was passed, reminding citizens we are all equal. Currently, there are local, state & Federal laws prohibiting racism. You clearly do not know what you’re talking about or conveniently excluding the facts. I believe it’s the latter.
Let it be known, Americans have examined its past and has made changes to correct a wrong–without outsiders forcing them to do so. Unlike the Germans, who you put up as a role model. The Germans, who started not one but TWO World Wars. Their citizens stood by and watched as Jews, Catholics, homosexuals & people with mental issues were led to concentration camps–in excess of 6 Million Jews were killed by the Germans. It took the Yanks, Americans, to free Europe from the German’s dictatorship. Unlike the Germans, Americans rose up & fought themselves (Civil War) to end slavery.
You see Martin, I’m trying to provide specifics, as you provide talking points. America has been reconciling its dark past–maybe not as fast as some want, but it has put up a mirror and has made changes.
Now, TE has been making changes in its curriculum.
Regarding the local residents, concerned parents, who you vilified for being concerned about how and what is being taught to their children—The TE Curriculum has in fact changed. I know this isn’t Virginia, but parents are allowed to have a say in what is being taught in a public school. You spin the facts. Parents simply do not want our children to be vilified for being white and place fault on current students for past wrongs. In addition, TE’s PTO groups are run by far left wing parents who think THEIR way is the right way. They expect parents to provide money as they hire very liberal speakers etc.
Where is the inclusion for ALL? It isn’t.
Finally, there were no DETAILS provided by Chester County Voter Services as what caused the “Computer Glitch”
I know for certainty, if that occurred & it reversed all the Democrat candidate’s results, the local Dems would be in an uproar!
Explain, I don’t know that the vast majority of Americans do accept the causes of the Civil War. There are still plenty of Lost Cause apologists. I did hold Germany up as a model of historical reconciliation, you’re correct. I still do. As long as folks in American deny the existence of structural racism — not individual acts of racism, but inbuilt, structural racism, baked into laws and institutions — then yes, we’re still behind our friends in Germany.
You move to talking about curriculum. I take it you’re talking about DEI and the examination of white privilege. Since I help run a DEI group within my company, I have a bit of experience with this. DEI does not vilify anyone for being white. It just doesn’t. It does encourage the examination of privilege. If you’re a person who benefits from privilege, that examination is likely to feel uncomfortable. You may even feel you’re being vilified for your privilege. But that’s not what it is.
As far as vote counts. Voter Services in fact never announced any computer glitch. That was outside commentary. There are a couple of issues I’m aware of — some discrepancies in vote totals. But those issues aren’t what caused the illusionary Election Night Republican leads to disappear. You use the terms reverse, but there was nothing to “reverse” because there were no final results. What happened was, to use a sports analogy, many Republicans were ahead at the end of the third quarter, due to the large numbers of Republicans who vote in person. Everyone knows that a lead at the end of the third quarter is not a win. In the fourth quarter the vote by Mail ballots were counted. (Wait, why couldn’t they be counted sooner? Oh, because PA’s Republican legislature explicitly forbids any advance work to speed the process of counting VBM ballots. You can’t even sort them by precinct. Ask yourself why.) Vote by mail ballots are 75% Democratic. A Republican needs to not just be leading at the end of the third quarter, but leading by a lot, to overcome what’s going to happen when the mail ballots are counted.
Let me illustrate with an example. In Chester County, 28.3% of ballots were cast by mail. Take a hypothetical race where 1000 votes are cast. 283 of those will be mail ballots. Those break 75% Democratic, so those mail ballots are going to be 213 D, 70 R. Overwhelming D advantage in the mail ballots. So how far ahead does the R candidate need to be on Election Day to not lose once the mail ballots are tallied? In this race, the R would need to lead at least 431 to 286 on election day – in other words, they’d need to have 60% of the vote. (If you check my math, you’ll see that the R would finish with 501 votes to the D’s 499). That’s why the dynamics are what they are. There’s no “flip” and nothing “reverses.” It’s just that the last 28.3% of ballots counted are heavily Democratic, so a Republican needs to lead by 60% or more on Election Day to win.
I appreciate your rambling, hypothetical response; however, Chester County Voting Services has “discovered a few issues which involved USB sticks, uploads and scans” as it relates to Tuesday’s election—not hypothetical, but fact.
Also, for the record, Dems never had lawn signs prior to 2020, encouraging voters to vote by mail. Your “historical” example goes back one election cycle. One election cycle does not create a reliable trend.
And your woke explanation about Germany vs America doesn’t even warrant a response. It does reinforce what you do for a living.
I have one absolute principle. Do not trust anyone who believes in antiscientific nonsense, pseudoscience, or conspiracy theories. Otherwise, I am a moderate who believes in compromise and working across the aisle, and who understands that many issues are complex and two-sided. I absolutely despise 9/11 truthers (many of whom used to be on the left, though that’s changing) and think Sandy Hook truthers (who are on the right) are the lowest of the absolute low.
As long as the Republicans refuse to repudiate the Q crowd, I will not vote for them. If you want people in T/E to vote for Republicans who might reign in the budget, dump the paranoid, self-congratulatory (“I have a special insight into the truth, and everyone who disagrees with me is an evil communist”) conspiracy theorizing. Please. I want two intelligent, rational parties.
I have to agree with Parent of 2020, I also vote on the issues & not straight party. I’ve always been a fiscal conservative, & a moderate; but lately the GOP has left me. Late Tuesday night when I was watching the county website for the returns, I noticed that there were approximately 12,000 mailin/absentee ballots that hadn’t been counted and that number did not change overnight. I was concerned because I have been voting by mail, and wanted to make sure my ballot was counted as I knew it had been received by Voter Services. I made a discreet inquiry & was told “There was a stop because of that (what I had asked) but real delay was a software issue from vendor that needed to be fixed.” That stop was requested by an attorney from what I understand. And yes I will continue to vote by mail, as it took over 10 days for my ballot to hit my MB, so there was no way I was mailing it back. I used the drop box at Easttown Library. It’s electronically tracked.
I also have to tell you that the results are faster now than they used to be due to the electronic system in place. Believe me when I say that the campaigns know how the vote is going depending on which precincts are in/out based on years of experience.
I don’t follow groups, I follow issues.
Ever since Trump won, and Clinton lost, we’ve been surrounded by unrelenting activists. “Hate has no home here”, has turned into, “Hate anyone who disagrees with me”. They have volunteered as Election Judges etc. They claim to be concerned about local issues when in fact, they only vote on national issues.
So, if we follow that thru, how can they be OK with the current DC Administration?
The escape from Afghanistan, leaving American allies .
Immigration-leaving the country vulnerable during COVID by allowing Hundred of Thousand migrants to enter. Meanwhile, TE green card residents can’t secure citizenship.
The poorly handled COVID resurgent during the summer.
Inflation-the highest levels in 17 years (gas, food etc)
Let’s Go Brandon!
The current White House has the lowest approval rating since January.
If the current TE citizens were so concerned about DC politics, their recent votes did not reflect what they say. So, either they suddenly don’t care about DC issues, or there is an issue with the results of the votes.
Do some research on Chester County Voting web site–look at the Voter Participation Rate—Way, Way high. Compare it to prior years. Does not appear kosher. When did they start to push mail in ballots? See a correlation? Facts, no conspiracy. (watch how they dodge the issue).
For the record, there is a formal inquiry into Chester County Voter Services reconciliation process. The Dems want us to believe in voter integrity as they control the process.
Wake Up TE, You’re Being Played!
I did the research as you suggested. The turnout for the last municipal election in 2019 — BEFORE Pennsylvania had no excuse mail-in voting — was 40.08% (https://www.chesco.org/DocumentCenter/View/52496/Cumulative-Results-for-Certification?bidId=). The turnout for the 2021 municipal election was 38.24% (https://pennsylvania.totalvote.com/Chester). Rather than being “Way, Way high,” municipal election turnout has DECREASED since no excuse mail-in voting went into effect.
Steve, Go back to Presidential Election—TE precincts had 86% Voter Participation Rates…too good to be true….it’s up there with Venezuela’s voter participation rates.
Take a look at the 2020 results from Bedford County (click on 2020 General Election Results by Precinct):
https://www.bedfordcountypa.org/departments/elections/election_results.php
In Bloomsfield Township [p. 41], turnout was 87% (Trump got 89% of the vote).
In Colerain Township [p. 71], turnout was 89% (Trump got 82% of the vote).
In Juniata Township [p. 149], turnout was 87% (Trump got 82% of the vote).
In Lincoln Township [p. 181], turnout was 86% (Trump got 91% of the vote).
In South Woodbury Township [p. 283], turnout was 85% (Trump got 90% of the vote).
In West St. Clair Township [p. 323], turnout was 85% (Trump got 86% of the vote).
In Woodbury Township [p. 339], turnout was 86% (Trump got 90% of the vote).
Are these results also too good to be true?
Where to start? How about correcting errors in your post:
* Trump signed a conditional peace treaty in 2020 with the Taliban which put a withdrawal date of May 2021 so Biden left later than that and successfully evacuated tens of thousands of Afghans.
* The government is not allowing hundreds of thousands of migrants into the country. Those that are admitted are first tested with some limited exceptions.
* Poorly handled resurgence? That was mostly to do with Republican governors fighting mitigation efforts tooth and nail.
* Major causes of inflation are the increase in the money supply due to stimulus payments (would you rather not have had payments to help people) and supply chain issues causing pent up demand, which were often due to the original mishandling of the epidemic by Trump and continued efforts by Republican politicians to blunt Biden’s efforts.
As has been mentioned in other comments, just because someone didn’t like the results doesn’t mean they were manipulated and/or there was some big conspiracy. This refusal to accept the validity of election results is one reason local Republicans lose.
TT3– Reading your post is like reading from Rachel Maddow’s Teleprompter—they’re all Democrat talking points.
Hmmm. No actual facts to counter them. That says something.
Why do I even bother–Like facts are going to change your mind…
FACTS—Larry Summers, Pres. Obama’s Secretary of Treasury, stated on Bloomberg’s Financial News TV, February, 2021, that the Biden’s Stimulus (Not Trump’s) Programs will cause serious increase in Inflation. (Search on You Tube)
On 11/10/21, CPI, Consumer Price Index (measures Inflation) was reported at a 30 Year high. This is NOT Transitory, as politicians will want you to believe. What does that mean? Everything we purchase–Food, Clothing, etc will/is costing more.
Now, you can explain it away with your Rachel Maddow spin or wherever you get your “news”, but the facts are stubborn. We are looking at Pres. Jimmy Carter days.
GAS–the price of gasoline has DOUBLED since Biden has become Pres. I get it, he’s trying to push us into electric cars. But we will still need fossil fuels for heat etc. Meanwhile, the current price of gas has a direct effect on everything we buy because it needs to be transported.
How does the Secretary of Energy,
Jennifer Granholm, handle a serious question?
By LAUGHING when asked by Bloomberg reporter, what she intends to do to increase oil production in America–to reduce the cost & reduce reliance on foreign suppliers.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/news/biden-s-energy-secretary-laughs-when-asked-about-increasing-oil-production/vi-AAQmMrF
This isn’t Trump or his Secretary of Energy-it’s Biden’s.
And yet, the progressives are STILL pushing for MORE MONEY–their 2-4 Trillion Package which they market as “Build Back Better” is full of social spending that Bernie Sanders & Co. are claiming we need. It is reported, this too will contribute toward increasing inflation. I’m not even talking about the debt our kids will be saddled with–wait until the Fed, increase rates. Either you don’t know, or you are ignoring a lot of facts.
I know, I know, but Pres Biden is saying it’s all paid for—just like Obama Care/Healthcare Reform Bill will not cost us a cent more–we will all save money–remember that line?. I know my Health Care Costs–Premiums, Deductibles have doubled in price since Obama Care was passed.
You can believe in propaganda, but when you post it, you loose credibility. Your post on Immigration is flat out wrong. HUNDEREDS OF THOUSANDS of IMMIGRANTS have FLOODED USA this year–during a pandemic, COVID. They are bused & FLOWN by the Biden Administration to various cities in the USA–Rachel Maddow, MSM, will tell you otherwise. Believe what you want to believe. Ignorance is truly bliss. Or you can buy NYTIMES and read their story from October, “Migrants were encountered 1.7 million times in the last 12 months, the highest number of illegal crossings recorded since at least 1960.
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/22/us/politics/border-crossings-immigration-record-high.html
While your’re believing a propaganda machine, our kids are the ones who will have to clean up this mess. Facts–search them out–they may not be where you’re looking. Enjoy your weekend.
Partisan issues aside, I am appalled by the turnout of 38%. I hope this number is wrong. We get the government we deserve. Voter apathy is a major problem. How to change it?
Here is some reporting on the vote processing issue:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/vote-discrepancies-discovered-in-chesco-election/ar-AAQsTNV
Thank you so much Steve — we finally have some specific information on the election process. I believe that its important for people to read/understand the discrepancies which occurred at Chester County Voter Services. Here is the article in its entirety:
Thank You Pattye. And Thank You Steve for posting this information. By first denying any voter issues (computer glitch) then providing voter results from Bedford County, you were loosing credibility. SO, Thank You for posting this information, it is much appreciated.
The question remains. This information was known and disclosed to Democrats & Republicans on FRIDAY. Why did it take until Monday to be formally reported to the public?
Further, David Miller went on this blog on Sunday to inform us of his voter results but never disclosed this information–why? Once again, this information was disclosed to both Democrats & Republicans on FRIDAY. Wouldn’t the current “Leaders” of TE, the Supervisors, disclose this information as soon as it was disclosed–to preserve voter integrity?
Instead, we had an entire weekend of rumors, speculation and innuendo being posted and gossiped.
Who does that serve? The Democrats. But not ALL the voters of TE. And maybe that’s why they remained silent.
Meanwhile, who allows “voter reconciliation to continue over the weekend without supervision”?
Once again, Wake Up TE, You’re being Played!
I never “den[ied] any voter issues (computer glitch).” To the contrary, what I said was “[t]he County did not report any ‘glitch’ to us poll workers” and “poll workers like me would have no information about any processing issues.” Please do not misrepresent my words.
As for posting the Bedford County results, I did that solely in response to the claim that 86% turnout in some TE precincts in 2020 “was too good to be true.” I asked whether the same (or, in some cases, even higher) turnout in Bedford County, which overwhelmingly supported Trump, also “was too good to be true.” The answer to that question would help me gauge whether the original poster was biased. I have yet to receive an answer.
Steve,
I applaud your efforts in trying to speak evenly and intelligently to the responses you are getting.
But some people can’t be helped. Well, really only one person.
It’s the same person with all the nonsense responses.
If you are going to tell residents of TE they are to wake up as they are being played, at least post under your real name. I am sick and tired of people posting under fake names and pseudonyms. Patty, you really should end this practice.
Three consecutive posts. Three consecutive deflections from the question.
Simple question—why wasn’t the voters of TE informed of the known voter discrepancies? In order to have transparency in our voting we should have been notified on Friday. When it was disclosed.
Instead, the usual shaming is in play. TE is now known as “Little Philly”.
The same post with quotes/specifics were in fact questioned all weekend.
Redundant, yes. So why wasn’t it answered?
You may not like my obsession, but my ancestors fought, shed blood for this country to have open, honest voting. It appears that one political party isn’t as concerned. Otherwise, people would focus on the topic and not me.
Joe, the specifics have been posted. You may not like it, no one should like it but, TE you’re being played.
Oh my.
“TE precincts had 86% Voter Participation Rates…too good to be true”
I worked the polls that day from 6am – 9pm. Our precinct actually hit 89% I believe. Absolutely accurate.
“Instead, we had an entire weekend of rumors, speculation and innuendo being posted and gossiped.”
Only in your head was this happening.
“Instead, the usual shaming is in play. TE is now known as “Little Philly”.”
Once again, only in your head is this true.
Please stop with your baseless accusations. Also please understand that you live in an area that is more D than R.
All of your nonsense is not going to change that. If you are that concerned about your local results it would behoove you to present better candidates or move to one of the many townships that Steve mentioned above where “you” will “win.”
This article contains a statement by the Chester County Commissioners that provides the most detailed explanation of the issues impacting the vote count that I have been able to find:
https://www.unionvilletimes.com/?p=49379
And it now appears that the County has completed the vote count and posted the final results:
https://pennsylvania.totalvote.com/Chester
As reported in the Chesco Times, “on Friday, November 5, Voter Services discovered additional mail-in ballots from a drop-box located at the Downingtown Library had not been counted.” one of the school board races in Downingtown was decided by one vote.
The Republican, Margie Miller, won with 1,185 votes. Her opponent, Democrat Rebecca Britton, got 1,184. What I find most interesting is that there was a single write-in vote cast in that race, which, in theory, could have prevented the race from ending in a tie.