President Donald Trump urged his supporters during Tuesday’s first presidential debate to « go to the polls and watch very carefully » for possible problematic elections, leading some Democrats and election experts to ring the bell ‘alarm against possible intimidation of voters
« I urge my supporters to go to the polls and watch very carefully because this is what has to happen. I urge them to do it, » Trump said near the end of the debate against Joe Biden, the democratic candidate
« Today there was a big problem in Philadelphia, they went to watch. They’re called poll watchers, a very sure and very nice thing, » he said « They got kicked out They weren’t allowed to watch You know why? Because bad things happen in Philadelphia «
A Philadelphia Inquirer reporter from a satellite office of the Election Council said on Tuesday that a woman who said she was hired by the Trump campaign as a poll observer was not allowed into the office
A spokesman for the city commissioner’s office said satellite polling stations are not considered polling stations, so poll observers cannot receive observer certificates from ballot allowing them to observe the process
« Polling observer certificates were not issued to anyone for anything other than election day observation activities at polling stations, » the office said in a statement
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif, said Wednesday on MSNBC’s « Morning Joe » that Trump « was intimidating people »
« It really is an argument for people to vote by post, vote early, vote by post, » she said « Don’t be intimidated by going to the polls and seeing people that look like ICE officers or law enforcement or something «
Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford tweeted Wednesday night that Trump was not talking about monitoring polls, he was talking about « voter intimidation »
« Bullying of voters is illegal in Nevada Believe me when I say it: you do it and you will be prosecuted, » he added
« The president blatantly urges his supporters to congregate at polling stations, enter and apparently harass and intimidate voters, » he said « Although there are » observers » authorized officers who monitor polls on election day, their tasks are clearly defined and they do not include what President Trump has suggested «
Every state has its laws regarding election observers, who are appointed in advance and whose main role is to ensure that each party has a fair chance of winning an election
But intimidation of voters or interference in the electoral process itself is illegal, aside from reporting potential problems to authorities, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, which follows the laws monitoring polls
Sean Morales-Doyle, deputy director of the Brennan Center’s Voting Rights and Election program, said many state laws govern who can vote at any time, poll observers and the role they play
« There are laws like this in many states Ordinary citizens cannot just engage in this kind of poll observation and for good reason, as it opens up the possibility of intimidation of voters, vigilance, which the president seems to encourage ”, he declared « But it’s illegal »
« I regret having to say this, but I think the president’s comments last night increase the risk of problematic events around the voting process, » said Edward Foley, electoral law analyst for NBC News and Ohio State University law professor
Foley said there have been concerns in various legal circles this year and in 2016 about the risk of increased violence surrounding voting in the United States The good news in 2016 is that these concerns have not materialized and to date there have been no major incidents with early voting this year, he said.
But Foley spoke of an incident this month in which a group of Trump supporters interrupted an early voting day in Virginia as voters entered a polling station Some voters and polling staff felt intimidated by what they saw, according to the New York Times
Following the incident, Herring released a statement saying, « The vote is a fundamental right and the foundation of our democracy No Virginian should ever feel intimidated or afraid in carrying out their duty as an American and voting «
The Republican Party reached a consent decree after allegations of voter intimidation by poll observers in majority black and Latino communities during the governor’s race in New Jersey in 1981 After the Democratic National Committee filed a federal lawsuit against the Republican National Committee, a federal court enacted a consent decree that subjected the Republican Party to reviews of its efforts to monitor proposed polls, Morales-Doyle said
But that consent decree expired in 2017, « so this is the first presidential election we have had without this oversight, » he said
The RNC announced months ago that it planned to recruit up to 50,000 observers this year to monitor voting irregularities Trump has often raised concerns about mass voter fraud leading up to elections, although election experts say it’s incredibly rare
« We need every able-bodied man, woman to join the military for Trump’s election security operation at Defenseyourballotcom, » Donald Trump Jr, the president’s son said in a recent social media ad » We need you to help us watch them Not just on polling day, but also during early voting and at the count tables «
Morales-Doyle said the president’s comments were also of concern as they could make others fearful of going to the polls
« It gives people reasons to be afraid to run for a vote, and that’s the fear that is going to be felt by some people more than others, » he said. « There is a history in this country of people engaging in violence to prevent people of color, black people in particular, from voting «
Daniella Silva is a reporter for NBC News, specializing in immigration and inclusion issues, as well as covering Latin America
Polls, bad things are happening in Philadelphia
World News – US – Trump’s call to monitor polls « very carefully » raises concerns about ‘voter intimidation
