Election Officials in Several States are considering the Implications of Voters Displaying Guns in Polling Places and the Potential to Intimidate other Voters or to Suppress the Vote. Officials say there are Concerns about People Displaying Guns to Intimidate Voters Outside of Polling Places as well.
In many States where Open Carry Laws don't Restrict Guns at the Polls, the Location of Polling Places, such as Schools or Churches, may have their Own Limitations on Voters bringing their Guns with them to Vote.
Most Voting Sites have Boundaries in place, like 100 Ft., to Prevent Campaigning or Loitering too Close to the Polling Place Location.
During Primaries earlier this year, Long Lines due to Covid-19 Slowed down Voting and Created more Distance between those in Line, which meant Voters were Waiting Beyond the Distance where Rules Applied to Prevent People from doing things at Polling Places like Campaigning or, in some States, carrying a Gun.
Laws about Guns and Polling Places vary by State. In 10 States: Arizona; California; Florida; Georgia; Louisiana; Mississippi; Missouri; Ohio; South Carolina; Texas; and the District of Columbia, plus Puerto Rico, Explicitly Prohibit Guns and other Weapons in Polling Places.
But many Battleground States do Not have the same Restrictions. A recent Study by Guns Down America and the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, Two Gun-Control Advocacy Groups, found that Multiple Battleground States have the Ability under their State Constitutions to Prohibit Firearms at Polling Places but have Not done so, though in some Cases Local Governments could also Step-In. States like North Carolina and Virginia have Broad Exemptions to their Firearm Preemption Statutes, Empowering Local Governments to Prohibit the Presence of Firearms in Polling Places if they choose to do so.
Election Officials around the Country are working with the FBI and Local Law Enforcement for a Series of Exercises to Prepare for Potentially Chaotic Scenarios around Election Day. Those Scenarios include Everything from an Election Website Crashing to Missing or Delayed Ballots to threats of Harm and Violence.
This past Spring in Michigan, heavily Armed Demonstrators gathered Multiple Times at the State Capitol in Lansing in Protest of the Governor's Coronavirus Stay-at-Home Order. One Man at the Demonstration was seen on Video carrying what appeared to be an American Flag with a Naked Doll with Long Black Hair hanging from a Pole with a Noose around its Neck. In August, several Fights broke out in Kalamazoo when a Far-Right Extremist Organization Clashed with Counterprotesters at a Rally. The Incidents Underscored Michigan's Gun Laws, which Critics deemed too Relaxed. Currently there is No State Law in Michigan that specifically Prohibits the Presence of Firearms at Polling Places.
An Election Official in Raleigh, NC said that Dozens of Voters were Calling and asking about Safety at the Polls. Civil Rights Groups have held Conversations on how to Ensure Peaceful Voting, and the NAACP Expanded Poll-Worker Recruitment in a New Program called "Protect Our People at the Polls," preparing Thousands of Volunteers, many in Battleground States, to Deal with Potential Voter Intimidation.
In Pennsylvania, Voting Rights Advocates have sounded Alarms about the State's Guns Laws that Allow Residents to Carry and Openly Display Firearms, Expressing concern the Law could be used to Intimidate Voters. The Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office doesn't Plan on giving Guidance to Law Enforcement Officials about Gun Laws and Voter Intimidation but is instead Planning on Reaching Out directly to the Voters. While the Attorney General's Office routinely puts out a similar Guide, there is more Urgency to Reach Voters given the Rhetoric around this Election.
One of the Sections in the Document is Expected to Focus in Part on Gun Laws in the State and Answer the Question: Can I take my gun to the polls? In Pennsylvania, Voters will be able to take their Guns to the Polls as long as they Lawfully Own them, unless the Polling Place is a School or Courthouse or another Place where State Law Prohibits Firearms. The Guide will Stress that it is Illegal to Aggressively Display a Firearm in a way that Intimidates Voters.
There will also be Details regarding what Is and Isn't Allowed for Poll Watching, how it Works and What the Requirements are, as well as what Voters should do if they Feel Intimidated, Reiterating the Information about Firearms and Noting that Voter Intimidation is Illegal.
But in Philadelphia, the City District Attorney's Office is going a Step farther with its Efforts to Combat Voter Intimidation, including making Assistant District Attorneys and District Attorney Detectives available while the Satellite Election Offices are Open, in Case of Intimidation, and Creating a Hotline for Voters to Report such Issues.
NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker
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