A Chester County judge’s signature appeared on a candidate’s petition. But she says it’s not hers.

The signature of a Chester County Court of Common Pleas judge appeared on paperwork that an auditor general candidate filed this week to get on the April primary ballot. The only problem: She says the signature isn’t hers.

Chester County Judge Alita Rovito is listed as one of the Chester County residents who signed nominating petitions for Democrat Mark Pinsley’s auditor general campaign. And at least two other voters on the same petitions said they don’t recall signing, either.

Judges in Pennsylvania are prohibited from signing political petitions for candidates, according to the state’s judicial code of conduct.

Rovito, reached by text, said she reported the case to the Chester County District Attorney’s Office on Wednesday. Pinsley’s campaign said it was launching an internal investigation, as well.

Chester County District Attorney Christopher de Barrena-Sarobe did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.

Rovito, a Democrat, told The Inquirer that “the use of my name and signature is concerning to me due [to] the potential implications on my role as a member of the independent judiciary.”

Pinsley is the Lehigh County controller and is running for auditor general against State Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta (D., Philadelphia) in the Democratic primary. Kenyatta received the state party’s endorsement last year.

This isn’t the first time a judge’s signature on a candidate’s petition has raised questions.

In Pittsburgh, a man gathering signatures in 2022 for former Democratic congressional candidate Steve Irwin was accused of forging signatures of voters, including that of U.S. District Judge Cathy Bissoon for the Western District of Pennsylvania. The man, Kirk Rice, was later charged by Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry on 75 counts of forgery-related charges.

Mariel Martin, Pinsley’s campaign manager, and Paige Wolf, his communications director, said on Wednesday that they didn’t hear about Rovito’s signature until reached by The Inquirer. They said that they will conduct an internal investigation but they are confident that Pinsley will still qualify for the ballot.

“We get over 2,000 signatures, and we train our volunteers to the best that we can,” Wolf said. “Unfortunately these inconsistencies happen, and we don’t always know how they happen.”

Signature gathering is a demanding requirement for candidates hoping to get on the ballot. Candidates across all elected offices must collect the necessary number of signatures from registered Pennsylvania voters from their political party in a three-week window.

Petitions were due Tuesday for candidates to qualify for the April 23 ballot. Auditor general candidates are required to compile 1,000 signatures, with at least 100 from at least five different counties. Pinsley’s staffers said the campaign gathered about 2,200 names.

Martin said that while the campaign doesn’t yet know whether the signature is incorrect, the campaign expresses its “sincerest apologies” to Rovito if it is.

“We’re going to take a close look at that particular volunteer’s signatures again,” Wolf said. " … We understand how wildly egregious and obvious it would be to forge an elected official’s signature.”

The signature appears on petitions signed off on by Deja Armstrong, 20, a Temple University student.

Armstrong said she didn’t know about the signature and that she wasn’t aware of anyone signing on behalf of someone else.

“Every signature that I’ve gotten walking around has been that person,” she said. “I’ve never forged a signature.”

Various signatures on the petitions listed as submitted by Armstrong have similar handwriting. Tara Dixon, a Chester County resident who is also listed on the petition, said the signature under her name is not hers. Another Chester County voter listed on the petition, Cheri Miceli, said she did not recall signing her name.

A candidate can have petitions challenged through Tuesday. A campaign or a county resident can file objections if it is believed that a candidate did not meet the nomination requirements.