PA county official apologizes after facing backlash for disregarding 'precedent' in ballot decision

Bucks County Commissioner Diane Ellis-Marseglia in Pennsylvania on Wednesday apologized for claiming that a "precedent by a court doesn’t matter anymore” when it voting on whether to count ballots, after she faced backlash for the remark.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled before the election that mail-in ballots that don't have proper dates or signatures cannot be included in official results, but two counties appeared to ignore the ruling during the election.

Ellis-Marseglia voted to count the hundreds of undated and misdated mail and provisional ballots, despite the court's order.

“I think we all know that precedent by a court doesn’t matter anymore in this country and people violate laws any time they want. So for me, if I violate this law, it’s because I want a court to pay attention to it,” Ellis-Marseglia said at the time.

The state Supreme Court doubled-down on its ruling on Monday, and blasted Ellis-Marseglia and Montgomery County board chair Neil Makhija for defying the orders.

“I wanted to start by apologizing for the upset and confusion that I have caused the citizens of Bucks County and the hardworking employees of this county and my family and those who share my last name,” Ellis-Marseglia said at a meeting on Wednesday, per The Hill.

“Anyone who knows me knows that I care a lot about elections and I have been involved in them all my life, virtually," she continued. "And like all of you and all Americans, I want this election and every election to be fair, to be honest, to be just and one we can have confidence in."

The apology comes as the state works on a recount of the Pennsylvania Senate race. The recount was triggered after David McCormick appeared to defeat incumbent Democratic Sen. Bob Casey by less than 0.5%. The recount is expected to be completed by Nov. 27.

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.