Six months away from the November election, voters find themselves in an election-season lull. However, while the primaries were not very competitive and yielded predictable nominees, polls show that election workers are concerned for their safety.
Most Republicans believe the latest presidential election was rigged, according to multiple polls. One Rasmussen poll showed up to 80% of Donald Trump voters in 2020 believed there was significant cheating that impacted the outcome.
The Republican Party’s front-runner vocally shared that sentiment, creating a new slogan on the campaign trail.
“Republicans must win, we want a landslide,” Trump said at a rally in North Carolina last month. “We have to win, we have to win so that it’s too big to rig. Too big to rig.”
Local election offices are ground zero on Election Day. Election skepticism created a contentious environment outside of local election hubs.
A recent survey asked 928 election workers if they’ve experienced threats or harassment on the clock. Nearly four out of 10 (38%) said they have.
More than half (54%) said they’re concerned about the safety of election workers this year and 62% of poll workers say they believe politicians will try to interfere with their ballot counting processes.
There are already a set of rules for checks and balances at election offices. There are things poll watchers can and cannot legally do when on the lookout for voter fraud. Trump’s campaign is looking to go as far as it can to have Republican watchdogs oversee a variety of steps in the election process, from machine testing to mail-in ballot processing.
More than 100,000 poll watchers and attorneys partnered with Trump’s Protect the Vote initiative. They will have a presence at local polling sites during early voting, Election Day, and post-election audits and recounts if necessary.
“The RNC legal team will be working tirelessly to ensure that elections officials follow the rules in administering elections,” the Republican National Committee (RNC) said in a press release. “We will aggressively take them to court if they don’t follow rules or try to change them at the last minute.”
Election integrity and security will be as closely watched as the results coming in on Nov. 5.
