Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania elections judge changes his tune after vote counting concerns

Published

1 year ago

November 4, 2024

Pennsylvania elections judge changes his tune after vote counting concerns

Pennsylvania’s Jay Schneider said he started volunteering as a poll worker in 2022 due to his own skepticism about how votes were counted.

During the last presidential election between Democrat Joe Biden and then-President Donald Trump, a spike in mail-in ballots due to the Covid-19 pandemic led to some of his concerns.

Schneider, who now serves as judge of elections for Chester County, Pennsylvania, recalled his feelings from four years ago to Newsweek in an interview Monday at the Caln Township building.

“I just find it hard to believe that what the 3,400 counties in the country that all of them are prepared for this giant influx mail-in ballots,” said Schneider, a registered Republican, who told Newsweek that he votes for ‘people over party.’ “I think there could have been some shenanigans.”

Jay Schneider is an Judge of Elections for Chester County, Pennsylvania in Caln Township. He started working at the polls because he was skeptical about the resutls.

Monica Sager / Newsweek

Heading into Election Day on Tuesday, many voters, especially Republicans, continue to express similar concerns.

According to an October survey from The Associated Press and NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, only one quarter of Republicans have “quite a bit” of trust in the nationwide vote counting. Those poll numbers improve for local elections officials, such as Scheider, as half of Republicans have a “great deal” or “quite a bit” of trust that municipal officials will count votes accurately.

Just last week, authorities in two Pennsylvania counties flagged thousands of potentially fraudulent voter registration applications, prompting Trump to stoke fears of fraud in the Keystone State. However, there was no evidence the applications have led or will lead to illegal votes.

Shneider says, with two years of experience an election worker, his “opinion has changed.” And while he says he can’t speak for election offices nationwide; he doesn’t see evidence of voter fraud happening in his own county.

“It’s very transparent,” said Schneider. “Here at the polls, we have Democrats and Republicans. Do you think one’s going to let the other get away with something? No. That’s the same thing at the county, plus everything is videotaped. You as a resident can just walk in here and watch things happen. It’s not hidden in anyway.”

As the fifth-most populous state, Pennsylvania holds 19 critical electoral votes, making it the largest of the seven key swing states in national elections.

Polls show Trump and Democratic nominee Kamala Harris in a dead heat in the Keystone State. According to polling expert Nate Silver’s calculations, the candidate who wins Pennsylvania has more than a 90 percent chance of winning the election.

Schneider said he voted by mail this year to tryout a new method of casting his ballot. “Just to make sure what the front-end looked like when you do that,” he said.

“This election is crazy,” Schneider said. “I have no idea what it’s going to be like because early voting — there’s a lot of that going on. But I have eight people (working the polls) this year. I never had that many people before.”

Poll workers demonstrate how ballots are are received, processed, scanned, and securely stored on Election Day at the Philadelphia Election Warehouse during a press tour by the Philadelphia City Commissioners on October 25, 2024, in…

AFP/Getty Images

Pennsylvania Poll Workers Gear Up for Election Day

This year, Schneider’s Election Day will start at 5 a.m.

Schneider will head to the local Wawa, get a gallon of coffee, then report to the Caln Township building in Thorndale. Along with the poll workers, Schneider will rearrange the furniture so that there’s designated areas for people to line up, grab their ballots, vote, and submit into the sealed ballot machine.

Schneider has a binder full of color-coded sheets that indicate what to do in different situations with voters, including additional paperwork for provisional ballots.

“It’s like our cheat sheet for the poll work,” Schneider said.

This year, Schneider said his team does not need to hand count ballots on top of the machine’s work. Throughout the day, the voting machine will be checked multiple times to ensure the ballots that are entered match with voters.

He said with a camera, a Democrat and a Republican there, “nobody’s going to mess with that.”

“For me personally. I know it’s legit. And talking to the county and other people that do the same job has everybody confident about what’s happening here, at least in Chester County,” Schneider said. “I don’t feel that there’s any issues here. I hope there aren’t any anywhere else.”

Election Day is tomorrow. Follow Newsweek’s live blog for the latest updates.

Follow Newsweek’s Monica Sager on Twitter @monicasager3 for more election updates from the key swing state of Pennsylvania.

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Pennsylvania

Pa. lawmakers outraged at federal attempt to prevent states from regulating AI

Published

16 hours ago

November 19, 2025

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Pa. lawmakers outraged at federal attempt to prevent states from regulating AI

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Pennsylvania

Republicans celebrate end of Pennsylvania’s carbon tax

Published

1 day ago

November 18, 2025

Press Room

Republicans celebrate end of Pennsylvania’s carbon tax

HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) — The $50 billion Pennsylvania budget was more than legislative Republicans wanted to spend, but they did it because Democrats agreed to stop pursuing the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, which is a tax on carbon polluters.

“It was a nail not only in the Boilermakers coffin when RGGI came into play, it was a nail in our knees,” said Shawn Steffee, business agent for Boilermakers Local 154 Pittsburgh.

In 2019, then Gov. Tom Wolf (D) signed an executive order seeking to join RGGI. The compact with 11 other states sets a goal to reduce planet-warming emissions and requires power plants to purchase allowances to release carbon dioxide.

It has been paused since then as it went through court challenges, never coming into effect in Pennsylvania.

Now, GOP lawmakers said they’ve charted a new path for the state that will welcome power producers promising trade jobs and lower electric bills.

“This is a total reset for what is the dominant economic driver of this Commonwealth, and that’s the production of energy and electricity,” said Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman (R).

But some Democrats are frustrated with their party’s concession. Rep. Greg Vitali (D-Delaware County) called Republican colleagues “climate deniers.”

Vitali’s anger extends to his own party and Gov. Josh Shapiro (D), too.

“The reason why RGGI was on the chopping block was Governor Shapiro never supported it,” Vitali said.

Shapiro insists the state can both promote energy production and protect the environment. There’s no argument against that from Republicans.

“I believe the climate is changing as it has changed for millions and millions of years,” Pittman said. “When we bring new technologies to the marketplace, we do in fact reduce emissions while increasing output.”

Supports said the state has now rolled out the welcome mat for new business. It’s unclear when the stampede will begin at the State Capitol.

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Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania Lottery Powerball, Pick 2 Day results for Nov. 17, 2025

Published

2 days ago

November 18, 2025

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The Pennsylvania Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Monday, Nov. 17, 2025 results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from Nov. 17 drawing

07-33-50-57-66, Powerball: 23, Power Play: 5

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 2 numbers from Nov. 17 drawing

Day: 6-5, Wild: 1

Evening: 9-2, Wild: 8

Check Pick 2 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 3 numbers from Nov. 17 drawing

Day: 7-1-3, Wild: 1

Evening: 0-0-3, Wild: 8

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from Nov. 17 drawing

Day: 8-2-0-4, Wild: 1

Evening: 0-5-6-8, Wild: 8

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 5 numbers from Nov. 17 drawing

Day: 6-3-0-5-9, Wild: 1

Evening: 5-6-6-4-5, Wild: 8

Check Pick 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash4Life numbers from Nov. 17 drawing

13-16-23-31-37, Cash Ball: 01

Check Cash4Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash 5 numbers from Nov. 17 drawing

04-21-27-29-42

Check Cash 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Treasure Hunt numbers from Nov. 17 drawing

08-09-15-16-20

Check Treasure Hunt payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Match 6 Lotto numbers from Nov. 17 drawing

01-03-29-31-46-49

Check Match 6 Lotto payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Powerball Double Play numbers from Nov. 17 drawing

11-18-23-59-69, Powerball: 05

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

Sign the Ticket: Ensure your ticket has your signature, name, address and phone number on the back.
Prizes up to $600: Claim at any PA Lottery retailer or by mail: Pennsylvania Lottery, ATTN: CLAIMS, PO BOX 8671, Harrisburg, PA 17105.
Prizes from $600 to $2,500: Use a Claim Form to claim at a retailer or by mail: Pennsylvania Lottery, ATTN: CLAIMS, PO BOX 8671, Harrisburg, PA 17105.
Prizes over $2,500: Mail your signed ticket with a Claim Form or in person at a Lottery Area Office (9 a.m. to 4 p.m.).

Lottery Headquarters is currently not open to the public. Visit the PA Lottery website for other office locations near you.

When are the Pennsylvania Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 10:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 11 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
Pick 2, 3, 4, 5: 1:35 p.m. and 6:59 p.m. daily.
Cash4Life: 9 p.m. daily.
Cash 5: 6:59 p.m. daily.
Treasure Hunt: 1:35 p.m. daily.
Match 6 Lotto: 6:59 p.m. Monday and Thursday.
Powerball Double Play: 10:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Saturday.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Pennsylvania editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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