So bad that a restraining order is being pursued against it….
Arizona isn’t the only place by the way….
An association for retirees and an organization for Latino voters are seeking a temporary restraining order against a group they allege is coordinating a campaign of voter intimidation in Arizona.
The restraining order request was filed Monday evening with a federal court lawsuit alleging that the group Clean Elections USA and its founder, Melody Jennings, were running afoul of federal law with incidents near ballot drop box locations in Arizona.
The lawsuit accuses the defendants of a “coordinated campaign of vigilante voter intimidation” in violation of the Voting Rights Act and federal civil rights law.
Clean Elections USA did not respond to a CNN inquiry.
A status conference has been scheduled for Tuesday at 10 a.m. in a federal courthouse in Phoenix.
The lawsuit points to three complaints that have been submitted by voters to election officials in the state. The complaints reported individuals photographing the license plates of the voters as they sought to cast ballots via drop boxes, with one complaint alleging that the individuals called the voters a “mule,” a reference to a fringe voter fraud conspiracy theory.
The Arizona Secretary of State’s Office has referred those and similar complaints of intimidation to the US Justice Department….
The Feds on the situation….
Attorney General Merrick Garland on Monday vowed that the US Justice Department “will not permit voters to be intimidated” during November’s midterm elections.
“The Justice Department has an obligation to guarantee a free and fair vote by everyone who’s qualified to vote and will not permit voters to be intimidated,” Garland said during a press briefing…
…
The FBI and sheriffs representing some of America’s biggest counties, meanwhile, have discussed the possibility of misinformation fueling violence at polling stations during the midterm elections, a representative of a sheriff’s association told CNN.
The briefing last week covered how law enforcement can balance supporting the security needs of election officials without risking intimidating voters by being “out in force” near polling stations, said Megan Noland, executive director of Major County Sheriffs of America, which represents the 113 largest sheriff’s offices in the country. The recent surveillance by private citizens of ballot drop boxes was also discussed, Noland said.
Neal Kelley, a former election official who also presented at the briefing, told CNN that the potential for confrontations at ballot drop boxes “is something that we need to watch.” The FBI declined to comment on the briefing.
The FBI, Kelley said, gave an overview of the threat environment facing election officials….