As Salt Lake County voters cast their ballots Tuesday, a dozen election monitors deployed by President Donald Trump’s Justice Department will be watching, according to Clerk Lannie Chapman.
The federal agency did not disclose which polling locations its monitors will observe. They are among a thousand election monitors the DOJ said it is enlisting to surveil polls in all 50 states.
The atypical move has some election officials bracing for possible federal attempts to meddle in the contests, which are administered at the county level, then certified by local and state authorities. Chapman said she is reminding her staff of the rights of both monitors and voters.
“Statutorily, poll watchers are allowed,” Chapman said. “They have rules and regulations that they have to abide by … and we’ll ensure that we’re not interfering with their rights. However, we will absolutely be ensuring that they are not interfering with our voters or intimidating our voters.”
All 12 of the election monitors are DOJ employees from Utah, the department told Chapman. They are expected to watch six polling locations in pairs.
A spokesperson for Utah’s U.S. Attorney Melissa Holyoak declined to answer questions about whether monitors are employed in her office, instead referring requests for information to officials in Washington.
Read the full article by Addy Baird and Emily R. Anderson at sltrib.com.
This article is published through the Utah News Collaborative, a partnership of news organizations in Utah that aims to inform readers across the state.