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Rhiannon12866

(203,031 posts)
Thu Jun 2, 2022, 03:45 AM Jun 2022

Republicans Reportedly Organizing To Disrupt Elections With Poll Watchers, Poll Workers - MSNBC Prime



Jocelyn Benson, Michigan secretary of state, talks about how election officials are maintaining election transparency and ensuring elections are properly staffed, while guarding against nefarious actors like those reportedly being recruited by Republicans to disrupt the integrity of elections in Democratic voting districts. Aired on 06/01/2022.

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Republicans Reportedly Organizing To Disrupt Elections With Poll Watchers, Poll Workers - MSNBC Prime (Original Post) Rhiannon12866 Jun 2022 OP
DOJ has the ability to counter this, gab13by13 Jun 2022 #1
In 2013, when Roberts summarily blew up Sect. 4 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 BumRushDaShow Jun 2022 #3
We had that same nonsense attempted here in Philly back in 2020 BumRushDaShow Jun 2022 #2
Even minor disruptions can have an impact ThoughtCriminal Jun 2022 #4
Vote early, vote often... BlueIdaho Jun 2022 #5
If anyone challenges my right to vote at the polls the first thing that I will do is request TexasTowelie Jun 2022 #6
If you're worried about it, you can check online to make sure you're still registered Rhiannon12866 Jun 2022 #7
I'm still registered so that isn't the issue. TexasTowelie Jun 2022 #8
I'm lucky, around here they just check to see if my signature matches. So far... Rhiannon12866 Jun 2022 #9

gab13by13

(20,867 posts)
1. DOJ has the ability to counter this,
Thu Jun 2, 2022, 06:37 AM
Jun 2022

it has a civil rights division headed by Kristen Clarke. It can put people in those precincts where Magats intend to disrupt voting.

DOJ can act to prevent this.

BumRushDaShow

(127,313 posts)
3. In 2013, when Roberts summarily blew up Sect. 4 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965
Thu Jun 2, 2022, 07:45 AM
Jun 2022

it upended much of that "monitoring" process.

About Federal Observers And Election Monitoring

(snip)


In light of the Shelby County decision, the Division is not relying on the Section 4(b) coverage formula as a way to identify jurisdictions for election monitoring. The Division can continue to engage OPM federal observers where there is a relevant court order. The Division also will continue to conduct its own election monitoring around the country, using its own staff, without relying on the Section 4(b) coverage formula. Please see the fact sheet here (PDF).

After the Shelby County decision, the Division can continue to engage OPM federal observers where there is a court order under Section 3(a) of the Voting Rights Act authorizing their presence. The monitoring of elections by federal observers is an important aspect of the Division's voting rights enforcement efforts. The success of the federal observer program is made possible by the long-term commitment of OPM to recruit, train, and supervise these federal observers, who serve as neutral and impartial observers of election-day procedures, and by cooperation and coordination with state and local election officials.

The Division also monitors elections in the field for compliance with the federal voting rights laws in jurisdictions not currently eligible for assignment of federal observers. Under these circumstances, one or more attorneys and staff members from the Division may be assigned to monitor the election in the field on election day and maintain contact with state and local officials.

https://www.justice.gov/crt/about-federal-observers-and-election-monitoring


From their fact sheet (linked above in the excerpt) -

(snip)

Since the Supreme Court’s 2013 decision, the department has considered the impact of that
decision in many ways, including its effect on our election monitoring efforts. In general, when
trained individuals travel to different locations to watch the election process and collect evidence
about how elections are being conducted, they have a unique ability to help deter wrongdoing,
defuse tension, promote compliance with the law and bolster public confidence in the electoral
process. Shelby County significantly impacted the department’s ability to watch for problems
while elections are taking place.
]

(snip)

BumRushDaShow

(127,313 posts)
2. We had that same nonsense attempted here in Philly back in 2020
Thu Jun 2, 2022, 07:26 AM
Jun 2022

but state law requires that "poll workers" live in and are registered to vote in the precincts where they plan to work and "poll watchers" must be registered to vote in the county where they intend to "watch", and many of the GOP loons they were trying to recruit to "watch" here were obviously NOT residents of the city of Philadelphia, and were thus not allowed in to do any disruptive "watching", much to the chagrin, teeth-gnashing, and whining by 45's crew.

In addition, they were trying to get "poll watchers" into the "satellite offices" where people were dropping off mail ballots or registering to vote and completing a mail ballot on the spot, then dropping it off.

Bad lawsuits happen in Philly? Pa. judge tosses Trump complaint over polling place restrictions

By Ryan Briggs October 9, 2020


A Philadelphia judge has tossed a lawsuit from President Donald Trump’s campaign over its poll watchers being denied entry to the city’s satellite election offices — an incident that led the president to claim “bad things happen in Philadelphia” during his recent debate with Democrat Joe Biden.

The president’s campaign claimed, without hard evidence, that the seven locations could be used for voter fraud, such as surreptitious early voting, and sought to send its own “poll watchers” to observe these sites. The campaign argued that these sites, where residents would register to vote or fill out mail-in ballots, would effectively qualify as polling places and that the campaign should be able to send representatives to observe operations.

When the City Commissioners, who oversee Philadelphia elections, rejected the demand last week, Trump campaign attorneys sued. “No one’s asking to interrupt the process,” Trump campaign attorney Linda Kerns said. “All we’re asking to do is to shine a light on it. But Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Judge Gary Glazer, in an order Friday, ruled that the satellite offices did not constitute polling places, leaving access to these locations to the discretion of the City Commissioners.

The back-and-forth led Trump to erroneously allude to the issue at a recent presidential debate — despite the fact that, at the time, the Trump campaign had no approved poll watchers in Philadelphia and no polling places had officially opened.

(snip)

https://whyy.org/articles/bad-lawsuits-happen-in-philly-pa-judge-tosses-trump-complaint-over-polling-place-restrictions/



Everything Pa. poll watchers can — and can’t — do on Election Day, explained

by Joseph Darius Jaafari of Spotlight PA and Emily Previti of WITF | Oct. 15, 2020


(snip)

But poll watchers are different from poll workers who run in-person voting. Generally, there are at least six workers inside each voting location manning sign-in tables, directing voters, and responding to voter questions or concerns. In Pennsylvania, they work only within the precinct where they are registered to vote. Election judges open polling locations, verify voting lists, and process the votes at closing.

Poll watchers have a different role. They observe and look for indicators of bias or interference: a poll worker providing too much guidance on a candidate; a machine acting erratically; any campaign materials within voting locations. Campaigns and political parties can appoint two or three watchers, respectively, per precinct. Only one poll watcher from each candidate and party is allowed inside the polling place at any given time, according to state law. Poll watchers cannot go into the area where voters are actually casting their ballots, and should rarely come into contact with voters.

According to Department of State guidance, poll watchers must report any potential problems to the election judge on-site at polling locations, who will then determine if the poll watcher’s claims are reasonable and merit follow-through. And while the president called for his supporters to go into locations and “watch” the polls, that’s not something you’d want to do, unless you’re aiming for an arrest and $15,000 fine.

In Pennsylvania, watchers can work only in counties where they’re registered to vote and must have a certificate from that county’s election office to show they are cleared to work. A federal judge recently dismissed a lawsuit from Trump’s campaign seeking to change state rules for watchers so they can work anywhere in the state, though an appeal is expected. State Republican lawmakers also have pushed for relaxed residency requirements during discussions over election reforms expected to resume publicly when the legislature returns to Harrisburg on Oct. 19.

(snip)

https://www.spotlightpa.org/news/2020/10/pa-poll-watchers-can-cant-do-election-day-explainer/


The issue came up during the vote tallying at the PA Convention Center downtown here on election day, which was live-streamed 24/7 for almost a week.

Pa. Supreme Court rules against Trump campaign in Philadelphia poll watchers case

By Kristen Johanson, KYW Newsradio 1060
KYW Newsradio
November 17, 20205:36 pm

PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled in favor of Philadelphia election officials in the poll watchers lawsuit filed after the election, saying they acted properly in setting rules for all poll watchers, including those from President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign.

In a 5 to 2 decision, the high court said state law doesn’t regulate how close or far poll watchers should be, adding the city’s election board was following COVID-19 regulations — setting up barriers and keeping them about 15 to 100 feet away from where ballots were being processed.

The case started in a city court, where Trump’s re-election campaign claimed Republican poll watchers were forced to stay 25 feet or more away from the ballot-counting process at the Pennsylvania Convention Center and could not see the count. The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania ruled shortly thereafter that poll watchers are and should be allowed to see the ballot-counting process within 6 feet, to keep with social distancing.

The Philadelphia Board of Elections appealed to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, which ultimately sided with the city. The high court said being able to see the text on ballot envelopes “would only be necessary if he (or she) were making challenges to individual ballots. … Observers are directed only to observe and not to audit ballots.”

(snip)

https://www.audacy.com/kywnewsradio/news/local/pa-supreme-court-rules-against-trump-in-philly-ballots-case


The "count" was mostly people feeding stacks of mail ballots into a machine and then stacking, boxing, and labeling the boxes with info about the contents.

The canvassers were reviewing/scanning mail-in outer envelopes and another set at that table were removing ballots in "secrecy envelopes" from outer envelopes and then another group removing ballots from inner envelopes and stacking them.

What these yahoos don't realize is that these ballots "aren't your grandmother's paper ballot". Each one is uniquely barcoded/QR-coded for the division/precinct and get a unique identifier so you can't just photocopy one and submit it again and again ( "stuff the box" ), because once that unique code is scanned, the system will reject any further attempts to accept and record another scan of that same unique code.

ThoughtCriminal

(14,011 posts)
4. Even minor disruptions can have an impact
Thu Jun 2, 2022, 11:51 AM
Jun 2022

Target precincts with high Democratic turnout.

Let's say there are 180 people in line and the poll watcher manages to add an additional average of TWENTY SECONDS per voter for the process - meaningless questions and challenges or whatever. The result is adding an extra hour for those at the end of the line and new arrivals. The line gets longer and more delay accumulates.

People have jobs to get to, children to pick up from school, appointments, etc. If the line gets too long, they lose their opportunity to vote.

Even if the poll workers call to bring in officials to deal with the disruptions, by the time they arrive the effect has already created enough delay to impact the votes.

BlueIdaho

(13,582 posts)
5. Vote early, vote often...
Thu Jun 2, 2022, 03:01 PM
Jun 2022

Obviously the second part is a joke, but voting early or by mail can upend schemes to create chaos on polling day. Educate yourself on your states rules and make sure your vote gets counted.

TexasTowelie

(111,313 posts)
6. If anyone challenges my right to vote at the polls the first thing that I will do is request
Sat Jun 4, 2022, 07:57 AM
Jun 2022

their name. That person will be notified that I intend to sue for attempting to disenfranchise my vote. They will also be sued for discrimination against the disabled. Hopefully, that will be enough to get the poll watcher to reconsider. Finally, if the dispute can't be resolved at the polls, then I will cast a provisional ballot.

If they fail to provide their name or reconsider, then I'll call law enforcement immediately so that they can speak to the poll watcher.

Rhiannon12866

(203,031 posts)
7. If you're worried about it, you can check online to make sure you're still registered
Sat Jun 4, 2022, 09:27 AM
Jun 2022

I check myself every once in awhile.

TexasTowelie

(111,313 posts)
8. I'm still registered so that isn't the issue.
Sat Jun 4, 2022, 10:22 AM
Jun 2022

When I vote I also have my photo ID, two or three other forms of identification, and my voter registration card.

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