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Texas refuses federal election monitors
Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson says the state will not allow federal election monitors at polling locations on Election Day. Nelson says it is a violation of state law.
Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson says the state will not allow federal election monitors at polling locations on Election Day.
The Justice Department said it would be sending monitors to 86 jurisdictions in 27 states on Election Day, including eight counties in Texas. Those counties included both Dallas and Palo Pinto.
Nelson sent a letter to the Justice Department on Friday saying they would not be allowed, because it violates state law.
"If the Secretary of State wants to say no to federal observers, it has that right now under the current federal law," said David Coale, a constitutional law attorney not involved in the issue.
The federal government routinely sends election monitors to polling locations across the country to watch for any potential voting rights violations.
Historically, the authority to do so came from the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which looked to equalize voting access.
A Supreme Court ruling in 2013 changed that.
"Federal election monitors have to either get permission from state agents, such as the Secretary of State in Texas, or they have to be operating under a federal court order, which does happen every now and then, but certainly isn't something that happens every day," said Coale.
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Nelson told the federal agency that their monitors aren't allowed inside Texas polling sites or in locations where ballots are counted under state law.
"Texas can be confident in the state's strong measures to ensure election integrity," said Nelson in her letter.
A recent AP/NORC poll finds one in three Americans believe local or state officials could interfere with results, something states are trying to prevent.
Still, there have been some attempts at election interference, like in Washington state where a ballot drop box was set on fire last Monday. Hundreds of ballots were destroyed.
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With tensions mounting, Coale believes the state is making the right call.
"I think it is good. I think it shows that there's a check and a balance," said Coale. "It's very important to have checks and balances and so that no one branch of government gets a hold of the election and runs the whole thing."