Missouri wants a judge to ban the Justice Department from sending federal poll monitors to locations in the state on Election Day. The lawsuit filed by the state’s attorney general and secretary of state called the Justice Department’s decision to place poll watchers in St. Louis a plan to “displace state election authorities.”
Officials with the DOJ said these monitors are needed to make sure federal voting rights are followed.
Up until 2013, the federal government had the right to put election observers at any polling place.
But since then, a Supreme Court ruling has restricted the department from placing watchers without permission.
When monitors are now allowed inside polling sites, they have to remain outside like observers including those aligned with candidates.
The DOJ plans to send monitors to different areas in 27 states on Tuesday.
The sites include all seven swing states.
The DOJ hasn’t commented on the lawsuit.
