ELECTION INTEGRITYProtecting Voters and Election Workers from Armed Intimidation
Although the United States is no stranger to political violence, our elections in the 21st century have been safe and secure. Rare events of violence closely covered by the media, but in reality, voter suppression by intimidation is much more likely to occur. While guns have rarely been used in elections to commit violent acts, they are increasingly being wielded as tools of intimidation.
Although the United States is no stranger to political violence, our elections in the 21st century have been safe and secure. Rare events of violence closely covered by the mediadrive public perceptions that political violence is imminent, but in reality, voter suppression by intimidation is much more likely to occur. And while guns have rarely been used in elections to commit violent acts, they are increasingly being wielded as tools of intimidation. Fortunately, many states already prohibit guns where elections are taking place, and this year, several more took action to prohibit them.
The spread of election-related conspiracy theories, especially by candidates and public officials, has resulted in an unprecedented barrage of threats against election administrators, prompting the Department of Justice in 2021 to create a task force to prosecute people who engage in such crimes. Thankfully, this surge of threats has so far resulted in few violent acts. But it has resulted in a mass exodus of career civil servants with irreplaceable experience. This vacuum creates the potential for good-faith mistakes in the election process that, ironically, can form the basis for more election denial conspiracies. Ultimately, election worker abuse can lead to voting process disruptions that result in real voter disenfranchisement. Voter intimidation, disproportionately aimed at voters of color, was present in the 2020 election and shows no signs of abating in 2024.
Increasingly, people engaged in the intimidation of election workers and voters are using guns to achieve their aims. In recent years, people have displayed guns to intimidate voters and people counting ballots. An armed mob appeared at the home of Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson while she was decorating for Christmas with her young son, accusing her of election fraud. Although these acts did not result in violence, they undoubtedly contributed to a climate of fear among election officials and voters.
In a nation where the number of privately held guns is ever increasing and the Supreme Court has drastically curtailed the ability to regulate them, it is critical to ensure that the polls, vote-counting centers, and other places where election officials work are off limits to gun carrying.
