PennDOT: Section of State Road to be Closed Until September

Earlier this month federal prosecutors announced a Bethlehem man was convicted of election fraud by a federal jury for voting twice in the 2020 presidential election

United States Attorney David Metcalf announced  Matthew Laiss, 32, of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was convicted  at trial on March 3 of election fraud offenses in connection with the 2020 presidential election.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Laiss  was charged by indictment in September of last year with one count of voting more than once in a federal election and one count of voter fraud and was convicted on both charges.

According to court filings, from at least October 2012 until about August 2020, Laiss resided in, and was lawfully registered to vote in, Ottsville, Pennsylvania, a municipality located in Bucks County. In or around August 2020, Laiss moved his primary residence from Ottsville,  to Frostproof, Florida. The same month, he applied for and obtained a Florida driver’s license and registered to vote in Florida.

In or about October 2020, the Bucks County Board of Elections mailed a ballot for the November 2020 general election to the Laiss’  former address in Ottsville, Pennsylvania, where his parents continued to reside.

As proven at trial, on or about October 31, 2020, Laiss filled out and returned the Pennsylvania mail-in ballot, casting a vote for the offices of President and Vice President of the United States of America, prosecutors say.

Then, according to investigators, on or about November 3, 2020, Laiss went to a polling location in or around Frostproof, Florida, and voted in the 2020 general election, casting a vote for the offices of President and Vice President of the United States of America.

According to a Penn Capital-Star report, the double voting was uncovered with the help of a multistate voter roll maintenance program called ERIC, which was the target of conservative attacks in the years after the 2020 election.

Numerous conservative-run states left ERIC between the 2020 and 2024 election, including Florida, where Laiss was double-registered, the report says

Pennsylvania remains an ERIC member state, even though legislation has been authored by Republicans at the state level to withdraw from the program, according to state records.

This “…conviction reinforces a simple principle: our elections must be fair, secure, and lawful, ” said U.S. Attorney Metcalf. “Casting a ballot in more than one jurisdiction undermines public trust and dilutes the votes of others. Our office will continue to protect the integrity of federal elections and hold accountable those who violate the law.”

Laiss is scheduled to be sentenced June 10, 2026, and faces a maximum possible sentence of five years’ imprisonment, three years of supervised release, and a $10,000 to $250,000 fine, for each of the charges on which he was convicted.

This case was investigated by the FBI, with assistance from the Pennsylvania Department of State, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark Dubnoff.

Editor’s Note: Mr Laiss in myriad of media reports publicly declared his support and votes for President Trump in the 2020 Elections

PennDOT announced that construction activities will occur at night Thursday on northbound I-95 in Northeast Philadelphia.

Motorists are advised of the following travel restriction:

• Thursday, March 12 and Friday, March 13, from 7:00 PM to 5:00 AM the following morning, a lane closure will be in place on northbound I-95 between the Castor Avenue and Betsy Ross Bridge interchanges for sheet pile installation.

All scheduled activities are weather permitting. Motorists are advised to allow extra time for traveling on northbound I-95 because backups and delays will occur.

The sheet piles will help support the embankment during northbound reconstruction of I-95 between Wheatsheaf Lane and Margaret Street as part of PennDOT’s $355.3 million I-95/BR3 project.

State Representative Kristin Marcell (R-Bucks) announced that she will  run for re-election in 2026, pledging to continue her record of independent, common sense  service to the people of the 178th District. 

“Working together with legislators, community leaders, and residents, we are finding common  sense, common ground solutions to the challenges Pennsylvania faces while still holding strong  to the shared principles of our community,” said Marcell. “That is the kind of record people want  in today’s divided government, and the kind of service I will continue to provide if re-elected.” 

Marcell has made common sense and the ability to bring differing sides together a hallmark of  her time in Harrisburg, which is how she was able to pass legislation into law in a divided  government, and bring Pennsylvania’s protracted FY2025-26 budget stalemate to a positive end. 

“From the beginning of last year’s budget process, I made it clear that we needed to come  together to focus state spending on priorities like education and job creation, oppose ideological  policies that would increase energy costs for residents, and protect our state’s Rainy Day Fund,”  Marcell explained. “By joining with like-minded legislators from both sides of the aisle,  rejecting extreme partisan politics, and sticking to the core goals of our community, that is  exactly where we ended up.” 

Marcell’s commitment to putting solutions above partisanship has resulted in the passage of  several pieces of her legislation through divided government. Her initiatives to improve patient  safety and care in nursing homes; to educate the public about the dangers of human use of  xylazine; and, to address “porch piracy” have all become law.  

Marcell pledged to once again follow the philosophy that has served our community so well: do  what’s right for the people she serves.  

“I will continue to fight for responsible, bipartisan government that focuses on the priorities of  Bucks County. I know those priorities – spending tax dollars responsibly, improving our  education system, keeping our communities safe, and sparking the job growth that helps families  reach economic security – because I have listened to the people I represent,” said Marcell. 

Along with working for legislation that helps our state, Marcell has also built a strong record of  delivering for our local communities and residents. She has helped secure millions of dollars in grant funding for projects that benefit Bucks County, and delivered strong constituent services  that have helped thousands of residents address their issues with state government. 

Marcell was born and raised in Bucks County and graduated from local public schools. She holds  a Master’s degree in public policy from the George Washington University and a Bachelor of  Arts in Policial Science from the Pennsylvania State University. Prior to being elected to the  State House, Marcell spent more than two decades in the private sector, helping provide strategic  and communications counsel to businesses in numerous fields.  

Marcell and her husband, Steve, are the proud parents of two children and reside in Wrightstown with their dog, Lilo.

The 178th District includes the townships of Northampton, Upper Southampton, Warwick and Wrightstown.