CREW requests records on states blocking deployment of DOJ election monitors

Despite increased threats of voter intimidation and political violence across the country, Florida and Missouri state officials blocked the deployment of Department of Justice election monitors to polling sites for the 2022 election. The states’ actions likely impeded the ability of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division to monitor elections and protect federal voting rights in Florida and Missouri.

CREW has requested DOJ records on the deployment of DOJ personnel to monitor elections in Florida and Missouri, as well as records related to any other state that declined or objected to DOJ election monitors. CREW also requested records on DOJ policies and guidance on the deployment of DOJ election monitors to polling places where state, county, or local officials decline to authorize the presence of DOJ election monitors at or near polling places. 

The requested records will shed light on how the DOJ responded to the states’ resistance to federal election oversight, as well as DOJ’s policies and procedures for deploying election monitors where states have objected to such deployments. Amidst the publicity stunts that Governor Ron DeSantis has pulled that have confused and disenfranchised voters—especially Black voters—the public should know more about the ability of the  federal government to provide an extra layer of protection for voting rights.