ST. LOUIS — Federal officials are preparing to handle complaints and issues around election fraud and voter rights on Election Day in the St. Louis area.
U.S. Attorney Jeff Jensen has tapped two assistant U.S. Attorneys to lead the efforts in the St. Louis area.
“Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination and to have that vote counted without it being stolen because of fraud," Jensen said in a press release. "The Department of Justice will always act appropriately to protect the integrity of the election process.”
It is a federal crime to intimidate or bribe voters; buy and sell votes; impersonate voters; alter vote tallies; stuff ballot boxes; and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input, the release said.
Federal laws also contain special protections for the rights of voters and provide that they can vote free from acts that intimidate or harass them.
Examples of voter intimidation that may violate federal law include questioning or challenging them by photographing or videotaping them, "under the pretext that these are actions to uncover illegal voting."
Federal law protects the right of voters to mark their ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice.
If people have concerns on Election Day, they can call 314-539-7733 to talk with federal officers.
The FBI will have special agents available in each field office and resident agency throughout the country to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on election day. The local FBI field office can be reached by the public on Election Day at 314 612-3000.
Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington by calling 800-253-3931 or by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov.
If there is a case of a crime, violence or intimidation, the U.S. Attorney's office urges people to call 911 before contacting federal authorities, saying state and local police have primary jurisdiction over polling places, and almost always have faster reaction capacity in an emergency.
“Ensuring free and fair elections depends in large part on the cooperation of the American electorate," Jensen said. "It is imperative that those who have specific information about discrimination or election fraud make that information available to my Office, the FBI, or the Civil Rights Division.”
