But Judge Matthew Brann, a longtime and well-known Republican in Pennsylvania, refused.
This was essentially the last major case seeking to throw out or block enough votes that could swing a key state in Trump’s favor, and Brann’s decision on Saturday is the 30th loss or withdrawal of a case from the Trump campaign and its allies since Election Day. There have only been two wins in court, about very small numbers of votes.
“Plaintiffs ask this Court to disenfranchise almost seven million voters. This Court has been unable to find any case in which a plaintiff has sought such a drastic remedy in the contest of an election, in terms of the sheer volume of votes asked to be invalidated,” US District Court Judge Matthew Brann wrote Saturday.
Brann went on to admonish the Trump campaign lawyers for not presenting factual proof for seeking to invalidate so many votes in the key battleground state.
“One might expect that when seeking such a startling outcome, a plaintiff would come formidably armed with compelling legal arguments and factual proof of rampant corruption, such that this Court would have no option but to regrettably grant the proposed injunctive relief despite the impact it would have on such a large group of citizens. That has not happened,” Brann added. “Instead, this Court has been presented with strained legal arguments without merit and speculative accusations, unpled in the operative complaint and unsupported by evidence.”
“In the United States of America, this cannot justify the disenfranchisement of a single voter, let alone all the voters of its sixth most populated state. Our people, laws, and institutions demand more,” the judge wrote.” At bottom, Plaintiffs have failed to meet their burden to state a claim upon which relief may be granted.”
The counties in the state are scheduled to certify their election results on Monday.
The judge said any further consideration of this issue “would unduly delay resolution of the issues” regarding certification.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
Kelly Mena contributed to this report.
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