HARRISBURG, Pa. — Governor Ed Rendell on Oct. 26 rescinded a state policy that had kept Pennsylvania’s list of polling places hidden from the public because of fears that terrorists could disrupt elections in the state.
Rendell’s abrupt decision came amid criticism from Republican legislative leaders one day after the Associated Press reported on the policy, which was implemented in 2004 as a result of terrorist bombings that occurred just days before Spain’s national elections.
The governor’s spokesman, Chuck Ardo, said ordering the State Department to make the list public was the right thing to do because the information was already available through county election offices. Voters can also look up their local polling places on the state’s voter-services Web site.
“The governor believes that revoking the policy will not have a material effect on Election Day safety,” Ardo said.
Department of State spokeswoman Leslie Amoros said Oct. 25 that the agency made its earlier policy decision in consultation with state police, the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency and the state Office of Homeland Security. At the time, the agencies agreed that not releasing the list would help ensure voter safety at the polls, Amoros said.
But critics said the policy ran afoul of the state’s open-records law and made coordinating statewide voter-mobilization strategies more difficult for candidates and political action committees.
On Oct. 26, the top ranking Senate Republicans sent a letter to Rendell urging him to reconsider the policy, and House Republican Leader Sam Smith separately called on the governor to do so.
“While the government should take reasonable cautions against terrorism, we should not use terrorism as an excuse to curtail the vote,” said Smith, R-Jefferson.
Russ Diamond, founder of the anti-incumbent organization PACleanSweep, praised Rendell’s decision, but said it came too late to help his group organize its campaign to oust most state judges seeking retention in the Nov. 6 election.
“As far as our effort this year, it’s too little, too late,” Diamond said. “We needed that list two months ago.”
Amoros said Oct. 26 that the State Department was working out the specifics of making the list available to the public.