Democrats cling to small hope of winning majority as Pennsylvania lawmakers go before voters

HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania voters will soon issue their verdict on the Legislature’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic by either extending the gains Democrats made two years ago or further tightening Republicans' longstanding grip on both chambers.

The GOP-majority General Assembly has been in hybrid mode this year, after senators and representatives gave themselves the choice of attending floor sessions in person or casting votes remotely.

n a string of bipartisan votes early in the crisis this spring, they gave schools flexibility on the 180-day instruction requirement, provided front-line workers with protective equipment and delayed the April primary election to June.

But Republicans soured on elements of Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s pandemic response, unsuccessfully attempting to overturn his business closure orders and prompting seven vetoes of COVID-19 legislation. More recently, the parties have struggled to find common ground on a bill to fine-tune mail-in voting, including changes sought by the counties that must implement it.



https://www.mcall.com/news/pennsylvania/mc-nws-pa-election-2020-state-legislators-20200912-nfudxv4g3beidhn3qqnvzfky2m-story.html