On Election Day, election deniers will test the NC voting process

After I wrote about “stop the steal” supporters disrupting poll operations during North Carolina’s May primary, a fellow named Gene emailed me to say he was going to be a poll observer in the November election.

“I will be there to ensure that our side is well represented,” he said. “Yes sir, I will go to my grave knowing that the 2020 election was stolen.”

Last week, I wrote to Gene to ask where he would be observing. He didn’t say, but he did mention that instead of being a poll observer, he has been hired as a poll worker.

On the first national Election Day since the Jan. 6, 2021, storming of the U.S. Capitol over claims of a rigged presidential vote, election officials are worried about disruptions and delays as election deniers confront poll workers or, as poll workers themselves, challenge voters without proper cause.

The experience at some early voting sites in North Carolina suggest Election Day could be marked by confrontations and delays as election skeptics try to root out nonexistent cheating. Rather than uncovering anything, they’ll add obstacles to voting and undermine the conduct of a fair election.

The problem is not just election deniers. It’s a breakdown in respect for the voting process by candidates themselves.

Gary Sims, director of the Wake County Board of Elections, said the behavior of candidates confronting voters and poll workers at early voting sites grew so contentious that he considered calling in police to arrest the bad actors. “These campaigners, I swear to God, have been like adult daycare,” Sims told the News & Observer last week. “I’ve never seen anything like this in my life.”

Election officials knew trouble was coming. More than a dozen counties reported problems with overzealous poll observers in the May primary. Election skeptics have swamped the State Board of Elections with frivolous public records requests that have sapped staff time. A group called the North Carolina Election Integrity Team, led by Lee County GOP Chair Jim Womack, says it has trained more than 1,000 poll observers.

The State Board of Elections passed temporary rules to clarify restrictions on the conduct of poll observers and election workers, but the rules were blocked by a review panel dominated by Republicans.

Voters rights groups are poised to record complaints of voter intimidation and intervene when voters feel they have been wrongly turned away. Democracy NC will have 50 volunteers monitoring a hot line for complaints and requests for assistance. The number is 888-OUR-VOTE. Spanish speakers can call: 888-839-8682.

Julia Hawes, spokeswoman for Democracy NC, said early voting has shown what to expect when all polls are open on Tuesday. “We’ve received calls about groups and campaigns encroaching the buffer zones around polling sites and approaching voters, election officials giving out incorrect information, sheriff and police presence at the polls, to name a few concerns we’re hearing in various places,” she said.

Casting the vote is only part of the process. The counting will involve scrutiny from self-appointed fraud detectors and the results may be rejected by those on the losing side.

Elections in North Carolina and across the nation are more secure than ever and they’re run by election officials and volunteers dedicated to free and fair elections. They deserve gratitude, not harassment.

Perhaps people like Gene, the election skeptic turned paid poll worker, and poll observers looking for conspiracies will be enlightened by seeing the process up close. Maybe they’ll acknowledge that the process is secure and accept the results as true.

If that’s the result, this could be an election in which both sides win. Otherwise, the sour legacy of Trumpism – the denial of election results – will continue to threaten the foundation of self-government. This election is not only about having faith in the results, it’s about having faith in democracy.

This story was originally published November 8, 2022 at 3:00 AM with the headline "On Election Day, election deniers will test the NC voting process."