Assault on Democracy: New York Seeks to Expand Protections for Election Workers and Polling Sites
October 29, 2024
By: Elizabeth Safaryn
In the wake of a highly contentious 2020 presidential election, the upcoming 2024 election continues to perpetuate skepticism among Americans regarding the integrity of our nation’s electoral process. One area that generates the most skepticism is the adequacy of the polls, more specifically, Americans’ declining confidence in the performance of poll workers and election officials. While election poll workers are temporarily recruited to perform tasks at polling sites before and on Election Day, election officials are elected and appointed professionals hired year-round to prepare for and conduct elections. Distinctions aside, these election workers are already anticipating targeted harassment and threats of political violence in the countdown to November 5th. While local election officials are investing in heightened security measures, such as panic buttons and bulletproof glass, the crucial question still remains: What measures are state legislatures taking to protect their public servants?
Approximately 38% of election officials have experienced threats, harassment, or abuse while carrying out their duties at the polls. In response, in 2023, the New York legislature introduced the “Election Workers and Polling Places Protection Act,” currently pending enactment by the New York Assembly Election Law Committee as of April 8th, 2024. The amendment to New York election law declares that anyone who intentionally intimidates or obstructs any person’s ability to serve as a poll watcher or authorized election official during an election is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor. In recognizing the urgent nature of these threats against poll workers, the New York legislature has additionally proposed an amendment to the state penal code, increasing criminal penalties against anyone who intentionally causes physical injury to an election officer while they are carrying out their official duties.
Despite the intention behind such proposed legislative measures, the current pending status does little to combat recent threats against New York election officials. As of September 17th, 2024, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has been investigating suspicious mailings sent to election officials across at least fifteen states, including the New York State Board of Elections office, that contain an unidentifiable white powdery substance. Such bioterrorist attacks against poll workers are not a new phenomenon, as near-identical incidents were reported back in 2023, where the white powder in question was later identified as the “one-pill-kill” fentanyl.
New York remains one of only sixteen states that have yet to codify statutes protecting election workers. While the New York legislature attempts to expand eligibility requirements of election inspectors and poll clerks, likely in response to the widespread resignation of election officials, the legislature has nonetheless exhibited minimal effort to tackle a seemingly urgent crisis facing the polling sites. While New York Attorney General Letitia James has issued guidance to local Boards of Election for combatting voter intimidation, and the New York legislature successfully amended the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Act of New York Provisions last month, the stark lack of urgency in redressing poll worker intimidation will only further exacerbate Americans’ distrust of election administration leading up to and following the 2024 presidential election.