Next steps outlined in Cabell/Walsh election appeals

A flurry of filings will be due in coming days for the Commonwealth Court appeals initiated by both Republican candidates in the tight race for state representative in the 117th House District, according to the briefing schedule.

As it stands, the April 23 primary election candidates Jamie Walsh and incumbent Michael Cabell are three votes apart, with Walsh in the lead.

Cabell is contesting a county Court of Common Pleas ruling that denied his request to count one provisional ballot and reject another. Walsh is seeking to overturn a county court decision denying his request to throw out six mail ballots in his race.

In the first filing requirement, the three-judge county court panels that issued the rulings must transmit a brief opinion or statement explaining the reasons for their decision to Commonwealth Court by 4 p.m. Wednesday in the Cabell appeal and by noon Thursday in the Walsh appeal, the schedule says.

The candidates must then file a “statement of issues to be presented on appeal” to Commonwealth Court in Harrisburg by noon on Thursday for Cabell and noon on Friday for Walsh.

Finally, both the candidates (appellants) and county’s five-citizen election board (appellee) must simultaneously file briefs on the merits of the appeal. The brief filing deadlines are 4 p.m. May 27 for the Cabell appeal and 4 p.m. May 29 for the Walsh one.

Under the posted schedule, both cases will be decided based on briefs without oral argument, although that could change.

Walsh is represented by Pittsburgh Attorneys Gregory Teufel and Adam G. Locke, of OGC Law LLC.

Philadelphia Attorneys Shohin H. Vance and Francis Notarianni, of Klienbard LLC, are representing Cabell.

County Assistant Solicitor Gene Molino will continue representing the county election board, and the county law office has approved the additional hiring of Attorney Timothy Gates, of Harrisburg-based Myers Brier and Kelly LLP, for the Commonwealth Court appeal.

Gates already is familiar with Luzerne County because county Manager Romilda Crocamo retained him last July to help develop standard election procedures and assist with other election issues following the release of the district attorney’s report on the November 2022 general election paper shortage.

Crocamo said at the time county DA Sam Sanguedolce provided her with the name and curriculum vitae of Gates as a proposed consultant because Gates had served as the Pennsylvania Department of State chief counsel and has a “vast amount of experience in campaign finance law and elections issues.”

Cabell wants the election board to reject a Lake Township ballot missing one of two outer envelope signatures and accept a Butler Township ballot the board denied because the voter was registered in Schuylkill County.

As of Monday afternoon, Cabell had not yet filed a Commonwealth Court appeal contesting the county’s denial of a separate filing seeking tallying of write-in votes.

Walsh wants the results of six mail ballots removed from the tally because the voters did not fill in the final two digits of the year on the outer envelope.

While the six ballots Walsh is contesting were already tallied, the two challenged by Cabell are part of a batch of 14 provisional ballots that remain unopened in that race pending completion of legal challenges.