Letter to the Editor:

Recently, the Republican appointees of the Chester County Elections Board unilaterally decided to relocate Precinct 477 (Phoenixville West 1) from the 157th to the 155th PA House District. This act is a violation of the due process rights and the right to vote for elected officials by the citizens of the 157th.

 This action, four weeks before the general election, is unprecedented and indefensible. It was done without a court order or due process. It is clearly a last-minute scheme to hijack a competitive race in the 157th by moving voters out of that district and into the 155th.

This kind of political game undermines and puts a stain on the election process. It is a blatant attempt to shift the political landscape of the region without the consent of the voters involved. It denies them the right to vote for the candidate chosen in the primary in which they voted. It either marginalizes their primary vote, or their general vote.

Regardless of partisan affiliation, this kind of political conduct is unacceptable. As a former representative of this district, I feel that all of those who voted in the 2014 primary in the 157th, have a right to vote for Marian Moskowitz or Warren Kampf on Nov. 4. By redistricting immediately before the election, the Chester County Voter Services is treating their votes as expendable. The voters of Phoenixville don’t deserve this. They have already been disenfranchised by Republican-approved redistricting maps, which cut the borough in half. Now Voter Services is injecting mass confusion into a pivotal race.

Trying to move these voters this close to the election is indefensible.  This is not who we are… or not what we strive to be.

 

Paul Drucker

Former State Representative of the 157th District

Paoli