By SDCN Staff
San Diego, CA–The U.S. Attorney’s Office in connection with the Justice Department will handle complaints from voters with a nationwide Election Day Program for the November 8 General Election.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth Askins has been appointed to serve as the District Election Officer for the Southern District of California, and in that capacity is responsible for overseeing the district’s handling of Election Day complaints of voting rights concerns, threats of violence to election officials or staff, and election fraud, in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington.
“Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination and to have that vote counted in a fair and free election,” U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman said. “Similarly, election officials and staff must be able to serve without being subject to unlawful threats of violence.”
The department will address those violations throughout the U.S. Their Election Day Program seeks to ensure public confidence in the electoral process by providing local points of contact within the department for the public to report possible federal election law violations.
Federal law protects against such crimes as threatening violence against elected officials or staff, intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input. It also contains special protections for the rights of voters and provides that they can vote free from interference, including intimidation, and other acts designed to prevent or discourage people from voting or voting for the candidate of their choice. The Voting Rights Act protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice (where voters need assistance because of disability or inability to read or write in English).
“The franchise is the cornerstone of American democracy. We all must ensure that those who are entitled to the franchise can exercise it if they choose and that those who seek to corrupt it are brought to justice,” U.S. Attorney Grossman stated.
In addition, the FBI will have special agents available in each field office and resident agency throughout the country to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on election day.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, D.C. by phone at (800) 253-3931, or by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov.
