Governor Wolf today issued a statement vowing to protect Pennsylvanians’ freedom to vote as House Republicans fast-track a bill that would create barriers to casting a ballot for many eligible voters.

“Pennsylvania had a free, fair and secure election in November 2020 with record turnout, in which people embraced mail-in voting and the results have been confirmed by two statewide audits. Despite the clear facts, too many Harrisburg Republicans have spent the past year spewing lies and conspiracy theories about elections because they don’t like the outcome. Now they’re trying to use their own lies as an excuse to retaliate against voters by passing an extreme election bill.

“This legislation creates barriers for people to register to vote, vote by mail and vote in person. Under this bill, voters would have less time to register to vote and apply for a mail in ballot and would be subjected to arbitrary signature verification on mail-in ballots or voter ID at polling places and limits on the use of drop boxes.

“This bill is not about improving access to voting or election security, but about trying to control voting for their own political gain, just as their counterparts are doing in states around the country. Instead of trying to silence the voices of some Pennsylvanians, we should build on the bipartisan achievements of Act 77.”

“I will always defend our democracy and the right to vote for every Pennsylvanian regardless of political party.”