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Al Schmidt gets crucial approval as he moves closer to becoming Pa.'s top election official
Spotlight PA link: https://www.spotlightpa.org/news/2023/06/pa-al-schmidt-election-official-confirmation-hearing/
Al Schmidt, the former Philadelphia city commissioner who made national headlines in 2020 for rebuking then-President Donald Trump’s election fraud claims, is one step closer to officially becoming Pennsylvania’s top election official.
The Pennsylvania Senate State Government Committee, a powerful, Republican-led panel overseeing election law and the Department of State, advanced Schmidt’s nomination to be secretary of the commonwealth in a nearly unanimous vote Monday.
Schmidt’s favorable recommendation from the committee is just the first step in his confirmation, but the praise he received from senators with a history of being critical of the department bodes well for his chances of being confirmed by the full body. That vote will need to happen quickly, as a statutory deadline on his nomination is Wednesday.
- snip -
Schmidt, who helped run elections in Philadelphia as the lone Republican city commissioner for more than a decade, rose to national prominence in the aftermath of the 2020 election for his forceful rejection, amid violent threats, of Trump’s election fraud claims. President Joe Biden awarded him the Presidential Citizens Medal this year, and he went on to lead the Committee of Seventy, a Philadelphia-based nonpartisan good government group, before Gov. Josh Shapiro nominated him to the secretary role.
The Pennsylvania Senate State Government Committee, a powerful, Republican-led panel overseeing election law and the Department of State, advanced Schmidt’s nomination to be secretary of the commonwealth in a nearly unanimous vote Monday.
Schmidt’s favorable recommendation from the committee is just the first step in his confirmation, but the praise he received from senators with a history of being critical of the department bodes well for his chances of being confirmed by the full body. That vote will need to happen quickly, as a statutory deadline on his nomination is Wednesday.
- snip -
Schmidt, who helped run elections in Philadelphia as the lone Republican city commissioner for more than a decade, rose to national prominence in the aftermath of the 2020 election for his forceful rejection, amid violent threats, of Trump’s election fraud claims. President Joe Biden awarded him the Presidential Citizens Medal this year, and he went on to lead the Committee of Seventy, a Philadelphia-based nonpartisan good government group, before Gov. Josh Shapiro nominated him to the secretary role.
- more at link -
If Chump and Mastriano both oppose Al Schmidt, I figure he's got to be one of the good guys.
NOTE: At the end of the article, Spotlight states that Mr. Schmidt could advance to the role of Secretary even if the Senate confirmation vote doesn't take place by next week. (From the OP) "It is unclear if the state Senate will act on Schmidt’s nomination or let him assume the position by default. As of Monday, no hearing in the Rules and Executive Nominations Committee had been scheduled nor had a vote in the full state Senate."
