PENNSYLVANIA (WHP) — The Department of Justice notified the PA Department of State and Secretary Al Schmidt in a letter that it will be sending election monitors to four counties in PA for the November 3 voting day.
According to a letter obtained by CBS 21 News, the monitors with the DOJ Civil Rights Division will be going to Philadelphia, Allegheny, Luzerne, and Lehigh to observe and take notes on the election processes.
The DOJ told the department that the monitors will “follow all rules of the state and jurisdiction.” This is not the first time the DOJ has sent monitors to states for election day.
The letter also explained what monitors will do if they observe an “election issue.”
They will notify their team lead for the jurisdiction. The team lead or the regional coordinator may then contact the designee for the jurisdiction about the issue. Monitors do not talk to voters inside the polling places. Monitors are forbidden from carrying firearms, even if your state is open carry.
The announcement comes after an ongoing investigation by the DOJ revealed an alleged 19 non-citizen voters had reportedly illegally voted in the previous general elections.
DOJ election monitor letter (003)PDF previewPreview PDF
READ MORE | 9 non-citizens in PA accused of voting in 2022, 2024 elections: officials
The DOJ said it will be holding meetings with jurisdictions that will be receiving the monitoring to further explain the monitoring efforts.
The Department of State issued a statement about the letter:
The Pennsylvania Department of State expects everyone working in, voting in, and observing polling places to follow all applicable state and federal laws. DOJ monitors are not legally entitled to any greater access to polling places than members of the general public and we encourage them to coordinate with local election offices where they will be present to ensure that their activities do not disrupt the voting process.Additionally, state and federal laws strictly limit military and law enforcement presence at polling places. The Pennsylvania Constitution prohibits the military from infringing on the right to vote in an election, and the Pennsylvania Election Code prohibits police officers from being within 100 feet of a polling place — unless they are voting, serving a warrant, or prevent disturbances at the polling place that interfere with voting. Federal law includes similar protections and prohibits both voter intimidation and the deployment of military personnel to polling places.