Column: ‘It’s a calling.’ It’s also scary. That’s why so many election officials are quitting
2 years, 9 months ago

Column: ‘It’s a calling.’ It’s also scary. That’s why so many election officials are quitting

LA Times  

The Jan. 6 Capitol riot grew out of President Trump’s false claim that the 2020 election was stolen. “These attacks have forced election officials across the country to take steps like hiring personal security, fleeing their homes and putting their children into counseling,” according to the center, a research and policy organization affiliated with New York University. It bears repeating that, despite Trump’s continued and incessant lies, U.S officials judged the Nov. 3, 2020, election — which saw record-high turnout amid the worst pandemic in a century — “the most secure” in the country’s history. The Justice Department last year created a task force to prosecute people who threaten election workers and in January charged a Texas man who posted a message urging “patriots” on Craigslist to shoot three Georgia officials. Still, the overwhelming majority of election workers surveyed by the Brennan Center felt the federal government hasn’t done enough to protect them.

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History of this topic

Election Officials Relieved After Fearful Poll Worker Shortage Doesn't Materialize
1 month, 4 weeks ago

Election Officials Relieved After Fearful Poll Worker Shortage Doesn't Materialize

CNN  

Election offices across the country are relieved after fears of poll worker shortages didn't materialize. A majority of election officials, including top officials in battleground states, say they have sufficient staff to handle the upcoming election. The Pew Research Center poll shows that 90% of Harris supporters and 57% of Trump supporters still have confidence in their state and local …

Election Officials Relieved After Fearful Poll-Worker Shortage Doesn't Materialize
1 month, 4 weeks ago

Election Officials Relieved After Fearful Poll-Worker Shortage Doesn't Materialize

CNN  

Election offices across the country are relieved after fears of poll worker shortages didn't materialize. Despite the challenges of the 2020 election, voters still have confidence in their local and state election officials, with a majority expressing faith in their ability to conduct a smooth and fair election.

Cop-Turned-Therapist: Helping Election Workers Deal with Threats and Harassment
2 months ago

Cop-Turned-Therapist: Helping Election Workers Deal with Threats and Harassment

CNN  

A group of active-duty and retired cops gather with election officials to plan for harrowing scenarios on Election Day. The sessions, which are held around the country, can trigger intense emotions for current and former election officials, some of whom have experienced harassment or death threats that have taken a toll on their mental health.

Domestic extremists with ‘election-related grievances’ could turn to violence in final weeks of election, FBI and DHS warn
2 months, 3 weeks ago

Domestic extremists with ‘election-related grievances’ could turn to violence in final weeks of election, FBI and DHS warn

CNN  

CNN — The FBI and Department of Homeland Security are concerned that “election-related grievances,” such as a belief in voter fraud, could motivate domestic extremists to engage in violence in the weeks before and after the November election, as it did during the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol, according to a new intelligence bulletin from the agencies. …

Election officials beef up security as new survey shows nearly 4 in 10 grapple with threats and harassment
7 months, 3 weeks ago

Election officials beef up security as new survey shows nearly 4 in 10 grapple with threats and harassment

CNN  

CNN — When officials in Durham, North Carolina, open their new $24 million elections operations center later this year, it will include a feature not in the original plan: a separate mail-room exhaust system to guard against dangerous particles spreading through the building. “There was mass concern.” A new survey released Wednesday by the liberal-leaning Brennan Center for Justice at …

Election officials see a range of threats in 2024, from hostile countries to conspiracy theorists
11 months, 3 weeks ago

Election officials see a range of threats in 2024, from hostile countries to conspiracy theorists

LA Times  

For election officials preparing for the 2024 presidential election, the list of security challenges just keeps growing. The company said it was unlikely that Russia, China and Iran would sit out next year’s contest because the “stakes are simply too high.” The report said Russia remains “the most committed and capable threat to the 2024 election,” with the Kremlin seeing …

Conspiracy theories and 'abusive conduct': Senate hears why election workers are quitting
1 year, 1 month ago

Conspiracy theories and 'abusive conduct': Senate hears why election workers are quitting

Raw Story  

State and local election officials face threats and intimidation, driving experienced workers out of the profession, a panel of election officials told a U.S. Senate committee Wednesday. Democratic and Republican election workers have been the targets of “threats and abusive conduct,” Rules Committee Chair Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat, said. “In recent years, election officials have faced both cybersecurity threats …

Column: Election officials are quitting in droves. Here’s why you should care
1 year, 2 months ago

Column: Election officials are quitting in droves. Here’s why you should care

LA Times  

Election workers check ballots at a processing center in Orange County. New research by a political reform group, Issue One, has given us something else to worry about: a troubling exodus of local election officials — those on the front lines fighting for truth, justice and the American way. The latest study suggests it’s now happening — particularly in battleground …

Election workers have gotten death threats and warnings they will be lynched, the US government says
1 year, 3 months ago

Election workers have gotten death threats and warnings they will be lynched, the US government says

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — More than a dozen people nationally have been charged with threatening election workers by a Justice Department unit trying to stem the tide of violent and graphic threats against people who count and secure the vote. John Keller, the unit’s second in command, said in an interview with The Associated Press that the department hoped its prosecutions would …

'Crisis situation': Arizona's top prosecutor vows crackdown on threats to election officials
1 year, 9 months ago

'Crisis situation': Arizona's top prosecutor vows crackdown on threats to election officials

Raw Story  

While her predecessor used a dedicated election crimes division to investigate hundreds of bogus election fraud claims, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes says she will redirect the unit’s focus to prosecute election-related threats and protect voting rights. And the Election Integrity Unit is also investigating a much larger effort to undermine the will of the voters — one that is …

EXPLAINER: What to expect at polling places this year
2 years, 2 months ago

EXPLAINER: What to expect at polling places this year

Associated Press  

COLUMBUS, Ohio — This year’s midterms are playing out against the backdrop of former President Donald Trump’s persistent falsehoods about losing the 2020 election, a relentless campaign that will have implications for voters across the country as they cast their ballots. Their added workload also includes responding to a flurry of public records requests and sweeping challenges to thousands of …

Election officials worry about potential poll worker interference this November
2 years, 2 months ago

Election officials worry about potential poll worker interference this November

NPR  

Election officials worry about potential poll worker interference this November Enlarge this image toggle caption Alex Wroblewski/Getty Images Alex Wroblewski/Getty Images America relies on hundreds of thousands of temporary workers to staff the polls during elections. "There is mounting concern that temporary election workers recruited and trained by organizations with nefarious intent may undermine security and trust in the election …

False allegations of voter fraud in 2020 led to increased threats against Texas election workers
2 years, 4 months ago

False allegations of voter fraud in 2020 led to increased threats against Texas election workers

Raw Story  

A rise in election-related misinformation has led to increased threats and intimidation of election workers in Texas and other states, according to a report released Thursday by a U.S. House committee. A Texas elections administrator from Tarrant County told the committee there was a social media call to “hang him when convicted for fraud and let his lifeless body hang …

Facing threats, some election workers weigh whether to stay
2 years, 5 months ago

Facing threats, some election workers weigh whether to stay

Associated Press  

— After polls closed in New Mexico’s primary last month, a worker returning ballots and other election materials to the clerk’s office in Santa Fe was followed by a partisan election observer driving so closely that mere inches separated their bumpers. “People are using threats as part of the attack on democracy to try to intimidate election workers, to try …

Threats testimony rings familiar for election workers
2 years, 6 months ago

Threats testimony rings familiar for election workers

Associated Press  

COLUMBUS, Ohio — This week’s gripping testimony to Congress about threats to local election officials after the 2020 presidential election had a rapt audience far beyond Washington — secretaries of state and election clerks across the U.S who said the stories could easily have been their own. Georgia was a center of threats to election officials as Trump and his …

Opinion: Battling election misinformation is key for democracy in 2022
3 years, 1 month ago

Opinion: Battling election misinformation is key for democracy in 2022

CNN  

Editor’s Note: Jocelyn Benson is the secretary of state of Michigan. Yet while this truth is unequivocal, and the 2020 election results remain abundantly clear and accurate, we’ve spent the last year battling pervasive efforts to deceive the American people about that reality. Election officials held the line and refused calls to taint election results while members of Congress stood …

Officials describe threats following 2020 election
3 years, 1 month ago

Officials describe threats following 2020 election

Associated Press  

PHOENIX — Election officials told a congressional committee Tuesday they’ve received graphic threats to their safety since the 2020 election and warned that pressure on election workers is a threat to democracy. Experienced election administrators are increasingly leaving the field as they face unsupported accusations of manipulating election results, a bipartisan group of state election officials told the Senate Rules …

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