When Pennsylvania state House Republicans voted late last year to impeach Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, they sent a message to the tens of thousands of voters who had just reelected Krasner in a landslide: your vote doesn’t matter to us.
District Attorney Krasner has not been accused of any crime or misconduct. Instead, state House Republicans impeached Krasner simply because they don’t like his policies. Impeaching a duly elected official over policy disagreements is an unprecedented and dangerous overreach.
Specifically, Republicans point to Krasner’s embrace of criminal justice reform and his work to reduce incarceration for minor offenses, hold police accountable when they do wrong, and strengthen diversion and harm reduction programs. There is no doubt that the rise in violence that is throughout the city must be addressed. But if violence is of true concern to state House Republicans, they should focus their energy on working with colleagues across the aisle to develop tangible solutions to reduce crime. Instead, they are using the rise in violence as a crass political ploy even as communities are hurting.
In the 2022 midterms, Pennsylvania voters overwhelmingly rejected the Republicans’ fearmongering on crime. They also rejected candidates who would ignore the will of voters and overthrow elections. This continued impeachment effort shows that Republicans have learned nothing from their electoral losses.
In playing such cynical politics, the Republican politicians driving the impeachment effort are just the latest contributors to a growing trend across the country to try to find ways to undermine and overturn legitimate elections, embraced by disciples of former President Donald Trump. From the former president’s Big Lie to the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, our democracy is under attack like never before.
But there’s reason to keep hope, and there are ways to fight back.
In a recent decision, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania ruled that the impeachment proceedings failed to meet any constitutional basis for removing Krasner. That ruling doesn’t necessarily mean that the impeachment effort is dead, but it may give some state senators pause when it comes to voting to convict or even continuing to appeal the lawsuit. That’s where you come in.
You can take action today by calling your state senator and urging them to oppose the impeachment effort. You can spread the word in your community and on social media about how impeachment is unfounded and a real threat to democracy. You can attend protests or other demonstrations.
We can’t sit idly by and let a handful of opportunistic politicians overturn a free and fair election. That’s not how democracy works. That’s why we have to stand up and take action now. After all, a democracy is only as strong as the people who participate in defending it.
Elizabeth Randol is the legislative director of the ACLU of Pennsylvania. Danitra Sherman is the deputy director of advocacy and policy for the ACLU of PA.
