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CNN —
Florida officials warned the US Justice Department that national election monitors are not allowed wrong polling places nether authorities law, pushing backmost against national plans for monitors successful the state.
In a missive to DOJ dated Monday, Florida authorities elections officials argued that national officials are not included connected the database of radical allowed wrong polling places, and adjacent if they did qualify, it “would beryllium counterproductive and could perchance undermine assurance successful the election.”
The Justice Department announced plans to nonstop elections monitors to 24 states, including 3 counties successful Florida – Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach. The signifier of sending national predetermination monitors to section jurisdictions dates backmost decades.
But the section did “not item the request for national monitors successful these counties,” Florida Department of State General Counsel Brad McVay wrote to DOJ successful the letter.
The Florida Department of State volition nonstop its ain monitors to the 3 jurisdictions, according to the letter, to “ensure that determination is nary interference with the voting process.”
Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd, an appointee of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is moving for reelection, told reporters Tuesday greeting that the petition by DOJ to spell wrong polling places was a deviation from years past erstwhile the bureau sent monitors to Florida. The DOJ nether erstwhile President Donald Trump sent monitors to six Florida counties successful 2020, but Byrd said they kept tabs from extracurricular the polling location.
“This is not to beryllium confrontational successful immoderate way,” Byrd said. “They sent a missive to the counties asking for support to beryllium successful the polling places. We told them that nether authorities law, that is not permitted, and we asked them to respect authorities law, and that they tin spell determination and bash their job, but they person to bash that occupation extracurricular of the polling place.”
Asked wherefore the authorities didn’t nonstop a akin missive successful 2020 erstwhile Trump’s DOJ monitored six Florida counties, Byrd said determination was nary alteration successful policy.
“The quality this clip was that the DOJ wanted to, successful their archetypal letter, they wanted to person monitors wrong the polling places,” Byrd said, adding that “they tin surely beryllium extracurricular of the polling place.”
The Justice Department told CNN it has received the missive but declined to comment.
Nationwide, national monitors see unit from the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division and from its US Attorneys’ Offices, who volition deploy crossed the state and tract nationwide complaints
The signifier of putting national observers successful spot astatine polling places traces backmost to the 1965 transition of the Voting Rights Act, but however the section carries that monitoring retired was impeded by the 2013 Supreme Court ruling that gutted parts of the law.
In Florida, each region runs its ain predetermination office. All 3 counties that DOJ picked to show are tally by an elected Democratic official.
Broward County Supervisor Joe Scott said helium did not person an contented with DOJ monitoring polling locations, and helium was amazed by the state’s objection erstwhile helium saw it Tuesday morning. But Scott said aft discussing it with DOJ predetermination monitors, they agreed to enactment extracurricular the polling locations successful that county.
“We effort to enactment good with the Secretary of State’s office,” Scott said. “The DOJ radical were knowing arsenic well. We’re not trying to prime a fight.”
In a statement, the Miami-Dade Supervisor of Elections told CNN, “The U.S. Department of Justice has nary volition of entering polling places successful Miami-Dade County.”
Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections bureau spokeswoman Alison Novoa told CNN the region volition beryllium pursuing the guidance provided by the Department of State Division of Elections.
“The DOJ has indicated to america that they volition coordinate with the Department of State and volition not effort to participate the locations,” she said.
Missouri has besides pushed backmost connected DOJ plans to show the predetermination successful the state.
In effect to a DOJ letter, Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft tweeted connected Sunday that “it would beryllium highly inappropriate for national agents to interruption the instrumentality by intimidating Missouri voters astatine the polls connected Election Day.”
Under Missouri law, the section predetermination authorization is empowered to determine who whitethorn beryllium astatine polling locations, according to the Secretary of State
“Cole County Clerk Steve Korsmeyer has rightfully declined to let this over-reach and the caput of state’s bureau afloat supports him,” wrote Ashcroft.
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