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Six cases of alleged elector intimidation astatine driblet container locations successful Arizona person been referred to the Justice Department successful Washington, Secretary of State Katie Hobbs said Monday, arsenic aboriginal voting options person been unfastened for astir 2 weeks crossed the state.
"Voter harassment whitethorn see gathering astir ballot driblet boxes questioning voters, brandishing weapons, taking pictures of radical voting and pursuing oregon chasing voters who are attempting to driblet disconnected their ballots, and it tin each beryllium considered elector intimidation. It is unacceptable," Hobbs said successful a release. "I volition proceed to guardant reports received to instrumentality enforcement, and I impulse instrumentality enforcement to instrumentality enactment to support voters from ongoing intimidation."
Attorney General Merrick Garland, asked connected Monday astir elector intimidation astatine Arizona ballot driblet boxes, said, "The Justice Department has an work to warrant a escaped and just ballot by everyone whose qualified to ballot and volition not licence voters to beryllium intimidated."
Five recorded complaints obtained by ABC News occurred betwixt Oct. 17 and Oct. 22, extracurricular ballot driblet boxes astatine 501 S. 3rd Ave. successful Phoenix and astatine the Mesa Juvenile Court, some successful Maricopa County. Most described an lawsuit of groups of individuals loitering adjacent the driblet boxes, filming and photographing voters arsenic they returned their ballots and successful immoderate cases, taking photographs of the voters' licence plates. One study described individuals dressed successful "camo-clad gear" and photos from election officials amusement astatine slightest 2 equipped individuals extracurricular the Mesa driblet container Friday.
A elector places a ballot successful a driblet container extracurricular of the Maricopa County Elections Department, connected Aug. 2, 2022 successful Phoenix.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images, FILE
One incidental report, filed connected Oct. 20 astatine 12:30 p.m. astatine Mesa Juvenile Court elaborate however a mates successful their 70s, who parked their car successful bid to individually enactment their ballots successful the driblet box, said they were approached by a radical of 5 oregon six men successful the parking lot.
"As we were getting up to our car, 2 individuals took pictures of our licence sheet and our car. I got retired and asked what they were doing. They claimed they were taking pictures for "election security" and I took pictures of them to study them to the DOJ for elector intimation and harassment. As we were pulling out, they continued to movie my wife, myself and our car," the ailment said.
Early voting successful the 2022 midterm elections began Oct. 12 successful Arizona, wherever 402,000 aboriginal ballots person been returned truthful far, according to information compiled by the caput of authorities from 15 region recorders. Aside from voters and credentialed authorities oregon enactment officials, individuals indispensable enactment astatine slightest 75 feet distant from unafraid driblet container locations, according to Arizona law.
"There's a radical of radical hanging retired adjacent the ballot dropbox filming and photographing my woman and I arsenic we approached the dropbox and accusing america of being a mile (mule)," different incidental report, filed connected Oct. 17 astatine 6:40 p.m. astatine Mesa Juvenile Court said. "They took photographs of our licence sheet and of america and past followed america retired the parking batch successful 1 of their cars continuing to film."
Accusations of being "mules" is successful notation to a wide debunked, far-right film, '2,000 Mules,' which falsely alleges that individuals hired by Democrats stuffed galore driblet boxes with perchance fake absentee ballots during the 2020 election.
Hobbs' bureau successful its merchandise connected Monday besides referred astatine slightest 1 study of predetermination idiosyncratic harassment to instrumentality enforcement implicit the play aft she and 2 different employees were sent a menacing and vulgar message: "Remember the French Revolution of 1799??...." it said.
Maricopa County Sheriff Paul Penzone told reporters connected Monday his bureau besides is moving with the DOJ to place which cases suffice arsenic elector intimidation. Since voting began, helium said his squad has written 2 transgression reports and submitted those to the region prosecutor.
"I deliberation it's undermining who we are arsenic a nation, and I deliberation that it's self-serving successful galore ways. And what bash I spot present arsenic the sheriff of 1 of the biggest counties successful the nation, I spot that each time I'm dedicating a sizeable magnitude of resources, conscionable to springiness radical assurance that they tin formed a ballot safely and that is absurd," helium said.
"The much folks that are creating problems, the much deputies that you're gonna spot connected the streets focused connected this versus burglaries and crimes against children and robberies and each the worldly we shouldn't beryllium doing. But we'll travel and we'll babysit polling sites due to the fact that radical person to misbehave, if that's what we person to bash to support democracy," helium added.
A idiosyncratic carries their aboriginal ballot into the polling presumption astatine the Morris K. Udall Regional Center during the Arizona superior predetermination successful Tucson, Ariz., Aug. 2, 2022.
Rebecca Noble/Reuters, FILE
Last week, immoderate individuals acceptable up campy determination and told ABC News affiliate KNXV they were retired astatine a driblet container successful Mesa to "catch immoderate Vitamin D" and with "Clean Elections USA" -- a radical that calls individuals to show driblet container locations.
"We are looking for existent Patriots to instrumentality a basal and ticker the driblet boxes. We privation to stitchery video (and unrecorded witnesser evidence) of immoderate ballot tampering that takes spot successful existent time," their website reads.
Former Trump advisor Steve Bannon hosted a pistillate named Melody Jennings past week connected his podcast, who said she's the laminitis of the group. Jennings said they're going to find "mules" -- different notation to the wide debunked "2,000 Mules" film.
Non-profit groups Arizona Alliance for Retired Americans and Voto Latino filed a suit Monday seeking a restraining bid against Clean Elections USA and the individuals they said person been gathering astatine and surveilling driblet boxes successful Arizona.
Maricopa County Board of Supervisors Chairman Bill Gates and Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer, who person faced decease threats of their ain arsenic predetermination workers, condemned the driblet container watchers successful a joint statement connected Saturday.
"We are profoundly acrophobic astir the information of individuals who are exercising their law close to ballot and who are lawfully taking their aboriginal ballot to a driblet box. Uninformed vigilantes extracurricular Maricopa County's driblet boxes are not expanding predetermination integrity. Instead, they are starring to elector intimidation complaints. Although monitoring and transparency successful our elections is critical, elector intimidation is unlawful."
Kelly Townsend, a Republican and authorities senator, tweeted Monday, "I should not person to accidental this but wearing tactical cogwheel portion watching a ballot driblet container could beryllium considered elector intimidation. Don't bash it."
ABC News' Isabella Murray contributed to this report.
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