Here’s What to do if You See Voter Intimidation

Early voters stand in line in Durham, North Carolina, Oct. 15, 2020 [Gerry Broome/AP]

By Samantha Grasso

In the lead-up to Election Day, nearly 100 million people in the U.S. voted – that’s two-thirds of the total turnout from the 2016 presidential election.

And yet, democracy still seems aflame everywhere we turn, from Republicans attempting to throw out tens of thousands of ballots to caravans of Trump-supporting QAnon conspiracy theorists patrolling highways.

That’s why the Asian Law Caucus, a San Francisco-based legal and civil rights organization for low-income immigrant communities and a member of the Asian Americans Advancing Justice coalition, is working to make sure that people can vote securely. ALC organized the largest field poll monitoring program in the nation in 2016, and has organized monitoring for every election cycle since.

I spoke with Adria Orr, the senior program coordinator for ALC’s voting rights and census team, about how ALC is trying to prevent voter intimidation and suppression on Election Day.

Here’s what poll monitors do

In California, anyone can observe the polls, but ALC has a long-standing relationship with the election administrators of the counties it oversees in the Bay Area and Central Valley. This means it can quickly escalate problems to county elections offices and issue long-term recommendations.

Poll monitoring volunteers are given a 90-minute training prior to an election. During a four-hour shift, volunteers go to five polling places and check that they’re language accessible by making sure that poll workers have displayed all translated materials, for example.

They also check for disability access, like making sure that a polling site can be accessed by people with wheelchairs, and that they can vote and be physically distant.

Volunteers also monitor for any broader forms of voter harassment and disenfranchisement, like poll workers asking to see IDs to check name spellings, and can assist voters who are having problems. When a volunteer encounters an issue, they’re trained to call it into ALC’s poll monitoring headquarters, where staff and other volunteers will then report the issue to the county, and follow up and escalate as needed.

When it comes to addressing voter intimidation, safety comes first

Since the start of early voting last month, pro-Trump protests have popped up at polling sites nationwide at the behest of Trump’s call that his supporters monitor polls themselves. While ALC is hoping for the best, Orr said, it’s preparing for the worst.

If volunteers observe protests happening at polling sites or other potentially intimidating behavior, they should report them to ALC’s headquarters. California’s secretary of state and the elections offices are monitoring these issues closely, and reports would get escalated as a high-priority issue. Orr’s group has also instructed volunteers at polling places that when it comes to this kind of behavior, their personal safety comes first. And if they feel they’re compromising their safety by observing the situation, they should leave.

If you’re experiencing voter intimidation or need help voting on Election Day, do this

Orr said to call 866-OUR-VOTE for individual assistance – it’s the hotline number for the national nonpartisan Election Protection coalition that anyone across the U.S. can call. The number is also available for people who speak Spanish, Arabic or Asian languages.

• Spanish: 888-VE-Y-VOTA – NALEO Educational Fund

• Arabic: 844-YALLA-US – Arab American Institute (AAI)

• Asian Languages: 888-API-VOTE – APIAVote & Asian Americans Advancing Justice (AAJC)

“There are a lot of organizations and folks out there to help make sure that there aren’t any barriers standing in between eligible voters and your ballot,” Orr said. “If you have the right to vote, nobody should prevent you from being able to exercise that right.”

Now, meet the Latinos and Black Southerners fighting voter suppression

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