HARRISBURG, Pa. - A Commonwealth Court judge heard nearly 11 hours of testimony Monday in a fast-tracked lawsuit seeking to give voters more time to return ballots by mail for the presidential election.
The proceedings will inform a report due Friday that’s expected to figure heavily in the state Supreme Court’s consideration of the case.
This lawsuit was filed earlier this year, before mail delays had grown over the course of the coronavirus pandemic.
In court Monday, former deputy postmaster general Ronald Stroman reviewed statistics on mail delivered to USPS standards - and it’s plummeted over the summer.
Stroman said election officials should allow three weeks between mailed ballot application and return deadlines.
Pennsylvania’s turnaround time is as short as a week right now.
Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar testified she wants just another three days to return ballots.
Citing the USPS letter to PA and other states warning them voters could be disenfranchised under the current deadlines.
Few states have a window as long as the one Stroman suggested.