Poll watchers: Republicans tout 'deterrence' as election officials fear vigilantism

Deep distrust successful nan American predetermination strategy among Republican voters has inspired a activity of wide predetermination canvass watchers purporting to protect against fraud successful battleground states, wherever immoderate officials fearfulness a move toward vigilantism earlier and connected Nov. 5.

"Their beingness unsocial is benignant of a deterrent, because everybody knows personification is watching," said Jeff Fuller, a retired Army Special Forces officer, self-described 2020 predetermination denier, and organizer of a GOP canvass watching effort successful Prince William County, Virginia.

Part of American elections for generations, canvass watchers are volunteers appointed by some awesome parties to observe really ballots are cast, handled, and counted. They study alleged irregularities to statement lawyers for imaginable further investigation.

"Poll watchers tin supply transparency. They tin raise issues that canvass workers mightiness not spot arsenic they woody pinch each sorts of different engaged jobs connected Election Day," said Andrew Garber, an lawyer pinch nan Brennan Center for Justice, a nonpartisan predetermination watchdog. "The interest becomes erstwhile canvass watchers spell successful either to fulfill partisan goals aliases to dispersed disinformation."

A Republican predetermination challenger astatine correct watches complete predetermination inspectors arsenic they analyse a ballot arsenic votes are counted into nan early greeting hours, Nov. 4, 2020, astatine nan cardinal counting committee successful Detroit.

David Goldman/AP

Several seasoned predetermination administrators called nan 2024 Republican effort "very significant," if not unprecedented, for its size and scope.

"We've sewage complete 175,000 volunteers who person signed up, registered, aliases are going done trainings," Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley told ABC News Live past period of nan party's squad of canvass watchers, canvass workers and lawyers.

Democrats person assembled a halfway ineligible squad to antagonistic nan GOP cognition and will besides person unpaid canvass watchers deployed successful cardinal states, though nan statement has not provided a full number.

Fuller described what he trains canvass watchers to look retired for.

"Is nan voter, erstwhile he comes in, is he asked his sanction and address? Does he springiness his sanction and address? Can nan canvass watcher perceive that and observe that dialogue? A batch of it is communal sense," he said. "If you spot thing that doesn't make sense. You tin inquire a mobility astir it."

Jeff Fuller, a retired Army typical forces serviceman and self-described “2020 predetermination denier,” trains GOP canvass watchers successful Prince William County, Virginia.

ABC News

Fuller concedes he has seen "no" grounds of predetermination fraud successful Virginia truthful far.

In caller elections, a mini but increasing number of canvass watchers person been accused of disruptive behaviour and intimidation strategies starring immoderate authorities predetermination officials to fearfulness this twelvemonth could beryllium worse.

In 2022, an equipped canvass watcher successful Texas trailed predetermination officials headed to count ballots. Others successful Arizona, wearing masks, maintained an intimidating beingness extracurricular ballot driblet boxes. Election unit successful Wayne County, North Carolina, accused canvass watchers of blocking access to voting machines and raising changeless objections successful an effort to disrupt nan process.

"We each want our elections to beryllium arsenic unafraid arsenic possible, but complete nan past mates of elections we've seen a increasing inclination of canvass watchers spreading disinformation, of leaving nan polling spot and announcing that they witnessed fraud that didn't really exist," said Garber.

"There's surely interest astir this predetermination arsenic well, that location are canvass watchers who are going successful and looking to dress up claims astir fraud, which tin past beryllium weaponized by losing candidates to opportunity that location were problems successful nan election," he said.

Supporters for erstwhile President Donald Trump are importantly little apt to person assurance successful nan accuracy of nan 2024 predetermination ballot count, an ABC News/Ipsos canvass finds.

ABC News

Poll watching recruitment efforts person tapped into lingering interest among blimpish voters astir alleged wide fraud during nan 2020 predetermination -- claims that person gone unsubstantiated but stay believed.

Thirty-three percent of registered voters -- including 66 percent of Trump's supporters -- endorse Trump's mendacious claims that President Joe Biden did not legitimately triumph successful 2020, according to a caller ABC News/Ipsos poll.

Just 6% of Vice President Kamala Harris supporters opportunity they deficiency assurance that votes will beryllium accurately counted successful 2024, nan canvass found. Among Trump supporters it's 54%.

"They've seen excessively galore things that can't beryllium explained -- information can't beryllium reconciled, different observations -- and truthful they want to make a quality now," said Mark Flaherty, co-founder of Citizens for New Jersey Election Integrity, a grassroots group that mobilizes blimpish predetermination volunteers. "They are nary longer taking their elections for granted.

At a gathering of nan New Jersey group complete nan summer, respective participants explained why they felt compelled to unpaid to watch nan polls aliases activity arsenic an charismatic polling spot staffer. "By and large, nan elections are thing but transparent, reliable, aliases bulletproof," said 1 man. Added another: "illegal immigrants -- we request to forestall them from voting."

Many seasoned nonpartisan authorities predetermination officials person said they fearfulness an escalation of canvass watcher strategies and person strategized connected really to resoluteness confrontations which whitethorn arise.

Election officials person been taking steps to summation transparency of predetermination operations successful a bid to antagonistic misinformation and conspiracy theories astir elector fraud.

ABC News

"To travel successful pinch rhetoric -- grand, contiguous accusations -- does not ever spell good because group are instantly saying you're doing thing illegal, you're doing thing fraudulent, and that conscionable amplifies turns connected from debased somesthesia to boiling rapidly," said Isaac Cramer, executive head of nan Charleston County, South Carolina, Board of Voter Registration and Elections.

"The past mates of years, each predetermination charismatic has started to deliberation astir threats to them, their family, their predetermination workers, and their staff," said Kristie Burr, head of nan Oconee County, South Carolina, Board of Elections. "It adds unit to our job."

Tina Barton, a Republican erstwhile predetermination charismatic from Michigan, received decease threats aft nan state's 2020 ballot count did not favour Trump. She now travels nan state to coach different officials connected really to prepare.

"It impacts you forever," Barton told ABC News successful an interview. "You alteration nan measurement you do things, really you talk astir things, what you stock connected societal media, really you limb your house, and limb yourself."

A Department of Homeland Security intelligence bulletin obtained by ABC News warns that "threat actors" are "likely" to push unsubstantiated claims of predetermination fraud "to thrust 2024 wide election-related violence" and notes that astatine slightest 12 individuals were sentenced "in narration to convulsive threats" directed astatine predetermination officials aliases volunteers successful 2020 and 2022.

Jeff Fuller says he doesn't condone violence, but he insists an service of canvass watchers looking complete their enarthrosis is nan only measurement to build backmost trust.

"I'm a partisan Republican, but I don't bargain threatening anybody aliases doing thing that is going to origin anybody to fearfulness for their life," Fuller said.

As for fears of vigilantism by immoderate of nan GOP's service of 175,000 poll-watching volunteers, Fuller says he tin understand nan sentiment, but "It's not true. It's not true."