Fitzpatrick loses bid to oust Bucks County election commissioner

A federal judge denied Republican Representative Brian Fitzpatrick's effort to remove a Bucks County commissioner from the election board on Monday. The ruling came one day before the general election in the 1st Congressional District. Diane Ellis-Marseglia remains on the three-member panel that oversees voting and certifies results in the county.

Fitzpatrick filed the suit last week in Chester County Common Pleas Court. He argued that Ellis-Marseglia showed animus toward his campaign and a disdain for election law. The complaint centered on her public support for Bob Harvie, the Democratic challenger. Harvie is contesting Fitzpatrick for the congressional seat. A poll from the Inquirer, New York Times, and Siena University showed Harvie leading Fitzpatrick by two percentage points. The race is considered a tossup that could shift control of the U.S. House.

Judge Jeffrey R. Sommer, an out-of-county judge assigned to the case, reviewed the arguments during a two-hour hearing at the Bucks County courthouse. Fitzpatrick's attorney, Geoffrey R. Johnson, presented video evidence of Ellis-Marseglia leading a chant at an October rally for Harvie. He also showed security footage of the commissioner removing copies of a local newspaper featuring a Fitzpatrick advertisement. Johnson argued that the appearance of a conflict of interest required her removal from the board.

Sommer disagreed with the legal theory. He wrote in a one-page order that the petitioner asked the court to perform a significant alteration of the election governance process based on supposition and opinion. The judge noted that without statutory authority, the court declined to act. Pennsylvania law allows for the removal of election officials only if they are unqualified, on the ballot, or impeached. It does not address ethical breaches or conflicts of interest.

Sommer suggested during the hearing that he could not rule in Fitzpatrick's favor even if he agreed the commissioner's behavior was a bad look. He explained that the law did not provide a mechanism for such a disqualification. The judge left the door open for the bias issue to be addressed by the board itself on specific matters that may arise after the election.

Ellis-Marseglia is a Democrat and a close friend of Harvie. She has served on the board alongside Chair Jordan Yeager and Republican Commissioner Gene DiGirolamo. County Solicitor Dan Grieser, who represented Ellis-Marseglia, told the judge that she has a First Amendment right to support a candidate. He noted that she certified election victories for Republicans, including all of Fitzpatrick's previous wins. Grieser argued that Fitzpatrick could seek impeachment if the conduct was severe enough, but that pre-emptive disqualification was inappropriate.

Harvie's campaign called the lawsuit a page out of Donald Trump's playbook, claiming it was an attempt to create doubt in the election process. Fitzpatrick's attorney said the ruling was disappointing but noted that the judge did not condone the commissioner's hyper-partisan activities. The hearing drew a small crowd, including a dozen people with heart stickers in support of Ellis-Marseglia. One attendee, Agnes Morrison, said she feared the suit was a tactic to delegitimize the election result if Fitzpatrick loses.

The next step in the process involves the board overseeing the general election vote on Tuesday. Ellis-Marseglia will sit on the panel as the votes are counted and results are certified. Fitzpatrick's team indicated they would appeal specific decisions if they believe the commissioner acts inappropriately after the election. The judge's order does not prevent future legal challenges to specific board actions.