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The Chester Country election staff checked the ballots for the last time, and then sent the ballots to the West Chester University Gymnasium for scanning and counting on November 3, 2020. (Emma Lee/WHYY)

Many questions about what Republicans in the Pennsylvania Senate could accomplish in their so-called “forensic investigation” of last year’s presidential election remained unanswered on Tuesday because they hired a contractor who did not point out any electoral experience.

Last week, Senate Republicans hired the Iowa state envoy, Sage, to sign a contract worth $270,000 to help carry out this work. Under pressure from former President Donald Trump and his allies, they searched for fraud in various states on the battlefield. Acts in support of their baseless allegations of theft were stolen.

In a brief conference call with reporters on Tuesday, Envoy Sage President Steve Lar said that if necessary, the company can hire people with expertise or subcontractors.

When asked about the details of his goals, Lahr only said that his team will review last year’s presidential election and the primary election in May last year, analyze evidence of “election misconduct” submitted to the Senate Republican online appeal, and review "Previous election audit related materials." "WHYY thanks to our sponsors-becoming a WHYY sponsor

Ultimately, the company's goal is to "provide recommendations based on factual analysis of future election and voting integrity legislation," Lahr said.

What we know about companies hired by the Republican Party to review Pennsylvania's 2020 election

Taxpayers will pay $270,000 to Envoy Sage, which said it has exposed "fraud among non-governmental organizations." Little is known about other information about the organization.

Lahr described his experience as conducting investigations and audits of contractors in the military and the Department of Defense, developing "critical information and intelligence" from "extensive, complex, and sensitive investigations and multidisciplinary analysis."

When asked about the details, he said that most of them are classified and kept secret at the highest levels of the federal government and the Ministry of Defense, and he cannot discuss these contracts.

Silverback 7, Lar's previous company, has an extensive list of federal contracts.

Republican-controlled committees in the House of Representatives and Senate have held hearings on last year’s election throughout last spring, and presented reports, as well as legislation that Democrats oppose. A bill was vetoed by Governor Tom Wolf. WHYY Thanks to our sponsors — Become a WHYY sponsor

The California-based OSET Institute is dedicated to researching election infrastructure and administration. Its chief operating officer, Gregory Miller, stated that there is no set plan for Republicans’ activities in Pennsylvania and Arizona. The concept of "investigation" for elections.

However, Miller said that some election administrators have expertise in elections. There are information technology companies that can analyze computer and network security, and there are voting system manufacturers that have a deep understanding of hardware and components.

The Philadelphia Election Commission refused to request an "audit" on the 2020 ballots and voting machines

Mastroiano is an ally of former President Donald Trump and has repeatedly spread false information about the 2020 presidential election.

Political scientist Mark Lindeman, who wrote and advised on post-election audits, said that many people have experience working closely with various election records and equipment, such as paper ballots, total vote counts, and registration. And voting records.

"Experience is important because novices may misunderstand the general quirks of elections as evidence of anomalies or fraud," said Lindeman, who works for Verified Voting, a company that advocates for election integrity and responsible use of election technology.

For example, Lindeman said that the widely questioned election "audit" conducted by Republicans in Maricopa County, Arizona, was full of baseless allegations based on basic misunderstandings.

"Inexperienced partisan consultants often come to offensive conclusions," Lindemann said. "They should not lead serious investigations."

Lar said that he considers himself to be bipartisan and fair, and has no preconceived notions of the tasks before him.

However, Senator Chris Dush (R-Jefferson), the person who hired Rahr’s company, signed a letter last year urging Congress to oppose Pennsylvania’s electoral vote for Democrat Joe Biden, despite having won more than 80,000 The authentication of the ticket wins.

In a Facebook post on January 1st last year, Dush declared that "there is no election. There is a scam."

Even if Republican senators avoid repeating Trump’s unfounded election claims about fraud, they still believe that Democrats cheated by distorting Pennsylvania’s election laws and the actions of the courts and election officials that led to last year’s election.

Critics within the Senate Republican Caucus say that those who want to conduct a "forensic investigation" are only interested in seeing Trump reinstatement.

Election administrators stated that since the counties and states have already conducted the necessary audits, the audits are repeated.

At the same time, Trump’s false allegations of election theft have been exposed by the courts, his own Department of Justice, and countless recounts. No prosecutor, judge or election official in Pennsylvania expressed concern about widespread fraud.

With concessions from the incumbent, the Democratic Party overturned a seat in the Pennsylvania Federal Court.

Dumas will be the only person of color in the 10-person court. This makes her the second of 31 judges in all three courts of appeals in Pennsylvania.

What we know about companies hired by the Republican Party to review Pennsylvania's 2020 election

Taxpayers will pay $270,000 to Envoy Sage, which said it has exposed "fraud among non-governmental organizations." Little is known about other information about the organization.

Pennsylvania officials, legislators, and judges raise their salaries significantly in 2022

According to data from the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics, this is the largest year-on-year increase since 1991.

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There are still questions about the Pennsylvania Republican election "investigation"

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