Posted: | December 5, 2014 04:39 PM |
---|---|
From: | Senator Judith L. Schwank |
To: | All Senate members |
Subject: | Media access to voting places |
As Americans have been energized in recent years by images of elections in newly democratized nations, vigilant concern for election conduct and integrity remains a continuing refrain here. I will shortly re-introduce legislation to make Pennsylvania elections more transparent by allowing reasonable, expanded media access to polling places. Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court last year refused to hear an appeal from a lower federal court ruling that upheld a Pennsylvania law restricting who may be within 10 feet of a polling place. A similar challenge in Ohio under a different federal appeals court, meanwhile, resulted in allowing media there to be inside polling places. In a media-conscious culture, expanded transparency would not only reinforce the integrity of elections, but could in turn increase voter interest and participation. My legislation provides a process that will permit properly identified media to enter a polling place to witness and record events so long as it does not disrupt the voting process or identify individual voters without their permission. Votes would remain secret. This was developed with and is supported by the Pennsylvania News Media Association. Cosponsors of SB 1178 in the last session included Senators Costa, Washington, Eichelberger and Tartaglione. |
Introduced as SB674