Chester County said it has appointed the law firm Fleck Eckert Klein McGarry, LLC, to conduct an independent investigation into how third-party voters were omitted from poll books on Election Day.
County officials said Monday that they have evaluated 10 law firms for the investigation and decide on FEKG due to its “its experience in complex investigations, its knowledge of election-related legal issues, and its independence from Chester County Government.”
The firm is tasked with answering the five following questions:
- What was the root cause of the production of incomplete poll books that led to the omission of third-party voters?
- What processes and controls were in place within the Department of Voter Services to ensure poll book accuracy?
- How and why did those processes fail? Were the processes and controls insufficient, or were they not properly followed?
- What other factors contributed to the failure or impeded Voter Services staff from identifying or reporting concerns?
- What caused the significant delays on Election Day as the County worked to mitigate the issue, and why weren’t supplemental poll books delivered to some polling places in a more timely manner?
The firm will begin preliminary work immediately and will present its findings, conclusions and recommendations by Dec. 19, 2025, county officials said.
The firm’s work will also be presented at a public meeting in Jan. 2026, officials said.
County officials also said that the firm will not be paid more than $35,000 for the investigation.
On Nov. 4, 2025, election officials in Chester County realized shortly after polls opened that their poll books did not include third-party voters, which include registered Independents, Libertarians, non-affiliated and non-partisan.
Around 75,000 voters in Chester County are registered with a third-party.
As a result of the issue, new and correct poll books were sent out to voting sites and voting was extended to 10 p.m. on Election Day.
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