Pennsylvania operatives wearing “Voter Protection” lanyards outside of polling places in multiple counties are giving the impression to voters that they’re government election officials.
Photos circulating on social media show operatives for the Pennsylvania Democrats wearing “Voter Protection” lanyards skulking around polling places, raising concerns of voter intimidation and suppression tactics.
🚨 @TheDemocrats are running around in Bucks County, PA with badges trying to pretend like they are elections officials.
— James Blair (@JamesBlairUSA) October 29, 2024
These people are not officials.
Intimidation tactics! pic.twitter.com/M3ILEEQPNg
Who are these creeps walking around voting locations in PA pretending to be election officials and intimidating voters??? @JoshShapiroPA @PAStateDept pic.twitter.com/8NAhIGsh9m
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) October 29, 2024
The Pennsylvania Democrats’ website had featured a recruiting ad for “early vote monitors” and “election day poll observers” to be the “eyes and ears on the ground at polling places across the state on election day.”
The ad also claimed Early Vote Monitors would be tasked to “engage voters outside their place of voting to assess any issues that may have arisen and to provide guidance to voters if any is needed.”
But importantly, the recruitment ad claimed that “observers must be physically present in Pennsylvania for their shift but do not necessarily have to be Pennsylvania voters.”
That crucial bit of information caught the attention of the RNC in September, which sent a letter to the Pennsylvania Department of State asking it to address the illegal move.
“The Democratic Party cannot be permitted to recruit poll watchers in violation of the law and flood polling places with unqualified out-of-state poll watchers across the Commonwealth,” the RNC letter said. “We urge your office to issue a public statement clarifying that poll watchers must be registered voters in the counties in which they serve as poll watchers. We further ask that you post a correction of the PA Dems’ misinformation and disinformation on the Department of State’s ‘FactChecking’ webpage.”
Pennsylvania law says a poll watcher “must be a qualified registered elector of the county in which the election district for which the watcher was appointed is located.”
In other words, poll watchers must live in the county where they serve.
“This advertisement recruiting potentially out-of-state volunteers is a strong indicator that voters across battleground Pennsylvania will run into intense pressure from many party supporters to vote Democrat on their way into the polling place,” The Federalist reported.
Meanwhile, video has also emerged on social media purporting to show Bucks County Emergency Services officials shutting down early voting lines at 2:41 pm EST well before the polls close at 5 pm EST.
What are you doing about this @GovernorShapiro?
— James Blair (@JamesBlairUSA) October 29, 2024
This is Bucks County Emergency Services shutting down the line in Doylestown right now at ~2:30 PM.
This is suppressive and intimidating. https://t.co/EUKsZYh5Me pic.twitter.com/m9noqX7MQD
Another shocking video shows a police officer in Bucks County reportedly turning away voters who showed up to vote at 4:38 pm EST.
BREAKING: New video from Bucks County PA shows police officer BLOCKING THE DOOR as voters were trying to vote at 4:38pm ET
— Jack Poso 🇺🇸 (@JackPosobiec) October 29, 2024
They were not allowed in and told to fill out requests, per @charisedwardss on the scene pic.twitter.com/njGuiiNlJj
This appears to confirm reports highlighted by Pennsylvania Republicans that Democrats are engaging in voter suppression by closing polling sites early and not accepting more voters.
Former President Trump on Tuesday assured voters that “Law Enforcement is all over the GREAT Commonwealth of Pennsylvania looking at, and for, VOTER FRAUD!”