Luzerne County Election Board certifies Nov. 3 general election results

The Luzerne County Election Board’s three Democratic members voted Monday morning to certify the Nov. 3 general election results, while the two Republicans on the board opposed the certification.

Fifteen residents spoke for more than an hour during the public comment portion of the virtual meeting raising various complaints and allegations — all urging the board to hold off on certification. They included Republican county Councilmen Stephen J. Urban and Walter Griffith.

County Republican Chairman Justin Behrens also was among them, saying he has “grave concerns” and believes certification without addressing all outstanding questions will set a precedence for future elections.

As promised, Republican board member Joyce Dombroski-Gebhardt voted against certification, going as far to assert that her colleagues would be guilty of election fraud if they approve to certify. She called for recounting of all paper ballots and replacement of the county’s new voting system.

Keith Gould, the other Republican board member, said the board’s review of ballots was “clean and concise,” accessible to the public, thorough and above-board. However, Gould said he was voting against certification because he had not previously heard from some of the citizen speakers who attended Monday’s meeting and believes some of the concerns they raised about equipment and processes warrant further investigation.

Democratic board members Jeanette Tait, Peter Ouellette and Audrey Serniak said they have confidence in the results that were certified.

Tait, the chairwoman, said the election was “very transparent” with numerous observers. Board members set up their review table to allow the public to circulate around them for observation and to ask questions, she said.

Serniak concurred, saying it was “a very transparent and very well-run election.”

Ouellette, the board’s vice chairman, said 2020 was a year of unprecedented election challenges and procedures for the county and state, and he thanked his board colleagues, poll workers and county employees for their time and effort.

He also thanked voters who “expressed their opinions in record numbers.” More than 156,000 county voters cast ballots, for a nearly 70% turnout, he said.

The board spent approximately 76 hours observing, reviewing and adjudicating this election, which he said was more open and transparent than any in his four-year tenure. It was covered and observed by local, national and international journalists, teams of lawyers representing campaigns, public interest groups and citizens, he said.

Problems and issues that were identified will be used to improve future elections, he said.

“None of those problems and none of those issues justify disenfranchising over 156,000 voters in Luzerne County, and none of them would justify not certifying the results of this election,” Ouellette added.

Ouellette said he was proud to certify the results and would not “take part in any scheme that would invalidate the legitimate votes of the citizens of this county, this Commonwealth or this nation.”

He paraphrased a quote from former Federal Election Commission Republican chairman Trevor Potter, primary author of the American Anticorruption Act, that a party that dislikes election results does not have the “right to change it by gaming the system.”

“Personally, I feel the strategy of unsubstantiated lawsuits, legislative maneuvering, conspiracy theories and outright lies to undermine public confidence in our most basic right to expect our votes to count is at the very least unpatriotic,” Ouellette said. “It denigrates the memory and sacrifice of those who fought for the ideals of our country, and is a clear and present danger to the Republic.”

County assistant solicitor Michael Butera also advised the board of case law ordering election boards to certify results and the potential imposing of sanctions and criminal penalties if board’s don’t certify elections as required.

The law says elections must be certified unless there is a court order instructing otherwise or a pending petition seeking a recount or recanvassing, Butera said.

Dombroski-Gebhardt said attorney opinions are not always right and pronounced her refusal to be compelled by anyone to sign the certification.

Monday’s certification means the county’s unofficial votes for each candidate become official, including the 22,000-vote lead U.S. President Donald Trump had in the county over Joe Biden. Biden is leading by 81,164 votes statewide, according to the unofficial results.

The state must certify results from all 67 counties for the statewide results to become official and advance to the governor’s certification of 20 electors for the Electoral College.