Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf vetoed Wednesday a sweeping bill passed by Republican state lawmakers that would have imposed voting restrictions—as well as a budget measure funneling money to controversial election audits—though GOP legislators could still get around the Democratic governor by passing a voter ID mandate as a constitutional amendment.
Wolf vetoed House Bill 1300, which would have imposed a voter ID requirement, restricted the use of ballot drop boxes, imposed stricter signature matching requirements and added additional restrictions to mail-in voting, among other measures.
It also included some measures that election workers had advocated for, the Philadelphia Inquirer notes, such as allowing mail-in ballots to be processed before Election Day and increasing pay for poll workers.
Wolf said the bill was “incurably riddled with unacceptable barriers to voting” and would “threaten to disrupt election administration, undermine faith in government and invite costly, time-consuming litigation.”
Wolf also signed the state’s annual budget, but did not approve a funding provision for the state auditor general’s office that Republicans had said they intended to use to establish a Bureau of Election Audits.
Some GOP legislators in the state have pushed for Pennsylvania to hold its own recount in line with the controversial privately funded one taking place in Arizona.
Republican state lawmakers are moving forward with a constitutional amendment that would impose a voter ID requirement for elections, which would be approved by voters as a ballot measure.
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