Kentucky election officials said Monday they will not let federal election monitors inside polling locations in Jefferson and Fayette counties following a notice from the U.S. Department of Justice.
Instead, the Jefferson County Clerk’s Office said they offered numerous other ways to assist the DOJ in a formal response, including offering a designated liaison and a pre-election briefing.
Jefferson County Clerk David Yates said if federal monitors ignore a standard 100 foot boundary from a polling site entrance and persist in trying to enter, his office may call local police.
“If they would violate that…just like any other person, everyone's held accountable to the same law,” Yates said.
Last week, an attorney for the DOJ emailed election officials in Jefferson County, Fayette County and the Kentucky State Board of Elections giving notice that the agency intends to send “monitors” to go to polling places and “observe and take notes.”
Yates said the notice “wasn’t a request,” and the email didn’t say why these two counties were chosen for monitoring. Jefferson and Fayette counties have the largest numbers of Democrat-registered voters in the state.
The letter said monitors would be plain-clothed and wouldn’t carry guns. Yates characterized the monitors as “civil volunteers” rather than federal law enforcement officers.
They would simply watch for compliance with federal voting rights laws designed to help people who speak minority languages or people with disabilities access polls. No Kentucky county is designated as falling under minority language protections under Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act.
Yates said, after a meeting, the DOJ was also given an opportunity to submit a memorandum of understanding detailing their plans, but didn’t respond.
“Our concern is to protect both voters and the integrity of the election,” the clerk’s office wrote to the DOJ.
The DOJ’s letter comes amid fears from election experts that President Donald Trump may order the federal government to interfere in the election next week.
It’s not uncommon for the Justice Department to have election monitors. Yates said he believes a monitor “drove around” in previous elections but sending monitors inside polling locations would be unprecedented.
In a statement, the Kentucky State Board of Elections echoed Jefferson County’s stance.
“DOJ election monitors know that they must follow the laws of Kentucky, which means that they, along with anyone else not casting a ballot, must remain at least 100 feet from the entrance to any polling site and that any attempt to intimidate a voter or interfere with an election officer could result in a Class D felony,” a spokesperson for state wrote.
The DOJ notice to Kentucky officials was nearly identical to notices sent to election officers across the country, including Indiana.
Kentucky law does allow for “challengers” — effectively poll watchers appointed by political parties and approved by the local clerk. Yates told the Jefferson County Board of Elections that parties hadn’t selected any challengers for the upcoming election and the deadline to register had passed.
