The state Senate's top Republican announced Friday that he will recommend that Democratic Senator-elect Lindsey Williams be seated in Pennsylvania's legislature, likely ending the months-long political battle over whether she could take the post following a residency dispute.
In a letter to Ms. Williams on Friday, Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati noted that the residency requirement -- that candidates for office must live in Pennsylvania for four years before being elected -- hadn't been fully vetted by the courts and that "no precise constitutional definition of residency exists," according to a release from his office.
Therefore, Mr. Scarnati wrote, he will recommend Ms. Williams be seated, meaning that barring any unforeseen developments, she will be sworn in to her 38th district seat on Jan. 1.
In an interview and statement, Ms. Williams reacted to the letter with kind words for Republican leaders and their caucus -- notably their "professionalism and efficiency in bringing this matter to a close as quickly as possible."
"While these last few weeks have been stressful for me personally, the Republican caucus and its leadership has been extremely fair and thorough in their evaluation of this situation," Ms. Williams said.
The battle over Ms. Williams' residency erupted after she was elected in November, when Senate Republican leaders cast doubt on whether she met the four-year residency requirement to run for the seat. At their request, Ms. Williams submitted more than 100 documents that she said proved she met the requirements.
"I understand that they needed to take their time and do their due diligence and review the materials I submitted," Ms. Williams told the Post-Gazette, "and I appreciate that. I'm glad they came to the same conclusion I've stated all along: that I do meet the residency requirements."
In his letter, Mr. Scarnati said he presumed the documents to be truthful, but that if any information emerged conflicting with them, the issue could be revisited on the Senate floor. Ms. Williams said she understands why Mr. Scarnati included this in his letter, but that it doesn't worry her because she's "provided everything I could possibly provide."
Mr. Scarnati's statement came on a day when grassroots groups took coordinated action across the state calling on Republicans to seat Ms. Williams.
Inside the Allegheny County Courthouse at noon, a group of demonstrators gathered — a few big political names in tow, including Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa — to publicly “remind” the GOP that refusing to seat the Democratic senator-elect would impede democracy and ignore the will of the voters.
"If they can do it to me, they can do it to anybody,” Ms. Williams told a crowd of demonstrators inside the courthouse.
“We have elections in this country … they are often vicious. They’re often tough. But at the end of the day, when the voters speak, that’s when we congratulate the victor,” Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said at the rally, which was also attended by lieutenant governor-elect John Fetterman.
Mr. Fitzgerald added, “We accept what the voters say, even if we don’t agree with it.”
Democrats had framed the dispute as an attempted power grab by Republicans, asserting that Ms. Williams won the election fairly and provided all the necessary documentation. As of Friday afternoon's rally, it was unclear what Republicans would do. Mr. Scarnati's statement came soon after.
Mr. Costa reacted to Mr. Scarnati's announcement by saying the process "reminded us how important it is that we look at the qualifications of members."
"I believe that Republicans had the right to be able to question the residency issue, and they went through a methodical and thoughtful process to arrive at a conclusion," Mr. Costa said. "I think that was important for all of us to appreciate that."
Coinciding with the rallies, more than 3,400 people had signed a petition Friday morning circulated by Keystone Progress that called on Republicans to “stop trying to steal a Senate seat with a dubious, partisan claim.”
At several districts offices and in Harrisburg, activists and voters planned to deliver petitions to Republican officeholders demanding that the GOP seat Ms. Williams.
Julian Routh: jrouth@post-gazette.com
First Published: December 28, 2018, 5:31 p.m.
Updated: December 28, 2018, 5:32 p.m.
