Court Keeps Regular Pace in Voting case

A Commonwealth Court judge has denied the Pennsylvania Republican Party's request for "expedited discovery" in a suit against the state and community group ACORN claiming voter registration fraud. the suit is one of three filed against the state in the past six weeks addressing election issues. The GOP voter fraud lawsuit goes to court Wednesday, when the judge will consider the party's request for a list of voters registered through ACORN, and greater fraud protections from the department of state, among other items. A second lawsuit, brought by the NAACP and voting-rights groups in federal court seeks to change the rules for issuing emergency paper ballots at the polls to avoid long lines. Secretary of State Pedro Cortez says he thinks it's too late to change the rules, which specify that 100% of voting machines at a precinct must be broken before paper ballots are used. The voting-rights plaintiffs want paper ballots issued when half or more of a precinct's machines break down. A third lawsuit brought against the state may see some action on Tuesday when the department of state must file a brief on whether voters should be allowed to wear campaign t-shirts or buttons when they go to vote.