Next Tuesday, you may see someone at your polling place who is not a poll worker, not a candidate's volunteer, and not a voter. They might be a lawyer from the U.S. Department of Justice, there to watch and take notes.
The Justice Department has said it plans to send about 1,000 monitors to states across the country on Election Day. That is the largest effort in the department's history. The department has monitored elections for decades, so the idea itself is not new. But the size, the people involved, and the timing have election officials in both parties asking questions.
That might sound like a story about federal paperwork far from your daily life. It's not. It's about whether you can walk into your polling place, vote, and walk out without anyone making you feel watched, rushed, or unwelcome.
FIRST: WHAT IS AN ELECTION MONITOR?
An election monitor is an outside observer whose job is to watch and report.
Federal monitors work the same way. They are trained to "observe and report," not to step in. They are supposed to follow the rules of the state and county they are visiting, including rules about where observers can stand. If they see something that looks like a violation of voting rights law, any enforcement generally comes after Election Day, not at the polling place.
Monitors are different from poll watchers, who are sent by campaigns and parties, and from election judges, who are the local workers who run the polling place.
WHAT HAPPENED
In September, Harmeet Dhillon, who leads the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, said the department planned to send 1,000 observers nationwide. She called it the largest monitoring effort in the department's history. For comparison, a DOJ official told PBS NewsHour that the 2022 midterms saw 388 federal monitors.
This week, the department began notifying counties where it wants monitors. According to NPR, the first notices went to Adams County, Colorado; Miami-Dade County, Florida; Hennepin and Ramsey counties in Minnesota; King County, Washington; and seven counties in Texas. NPR reported that the list appears to be growing. NPR's reporting did not mention Maryland, and neither did PBS's. As of this writing, we have not seen a public list of Maryland locations, and the department has said more details will come "closer to the election."
Some of the rules are changing too. PBS reported that the department has dropped a long-standing practice of not using prosecutors as monitors. A DOJ official confirmed that prosecutors will take part, but said they would not personally prosecute anything they observe.
The primaries gave a preview. In Wyoming's August 18 primary, a local official said two monitors asked about poll worker training, new equipment, and vote counting machines without notice. A Republican county clerk and the state's Republican governor raised concerns, and the department later acknowledged it had not told the local clerk ahead of time. In Minnesota, monitors were not given close access to polling places in the August primary.
WHAT SUPPORTERS OF THE MONITORING PLAN SAY
The Justice Department says monitoring is routine and follows federal law. A department spokesperson said it prioritizes places with competitive elections, and pointed to Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act, which requires election materials in other languages in certain communities, as one reason Adams County was chosen. A senior DOJ official said the effort will follow federal statutes, and that monitors "only observe and take notes," according to the letter Colorado received. The department also says it would work with local law enforcement if monitors see intimidation on Election Day. A DOJ official said he had seen no specific facts of wrongdoing by monitors during the primaries.
WHAT ELECTION OFFICIALS AND VOTING RIGHTS GROUPS SAY
Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold, a Democrat, called the department "hostile" to free and fair elections and said she sees no reasonable basis for the monitors. Josh Zygielbaum, the Democratic clerk of Adams County, said he was surprised the department contacted his office but not the Republican clerk in neighboring Weld County, and called it a possible "intimidation technique."
The concerns are not only from Democrats. Kansas Secretary of State Scott Schwab, a Republican, said even one monitor in his state would be "overkill" and called the plan possibly a "feel-good measure." Wyoming's Republican governor raised concerns about "aggressive" and "irregular" conduct at the August primary. David Becker, a former DOJ voting section attorney, noted that the agency does not have "blanket authority to be everywhere" and that monitors must follow state and local rules about entering polling places. Experts quoted by NPR worry that federal law enforcement could use unproven fraud claims as a reason to interfere with counting.
WHAT WE DON'T KNOW YET
We do not know how many jurisdictions will be monitored, or whether any will be in Maryland. The department says it will share details closer to the election. We do not know whether states that have required permission for outside observers, like Colorado, will grant it, or whether some will challenge the plan in court, as Texas did in 2024. We do not know how monitors will be trained or what instructions the prosecutors among them will follow. And we do not know whether the problems reported in Wyoming were a one-time event or a sign of what is coming. We will update this Dispatch if the picture changes before Election Day.
WHAT YOU CAN DO
- Know your rights at the polls. If you are in line when polls close, you can still vote. If someone tells you that you cannot vote and you believe you are eligible, ask for a provisional ballot. Check your polling place and hours at elections.maryland.gov before you go.
- If something feels wrong, write it down. Note the time, the place, and what you saw or heard, then tell the election judge in charge. You can also call the nonpartisan Election Protection hotline at 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683).
- Be a calm presence for your neighbors. Offer to go with a first-time voter, an older relative, or a friend who feels nervous. Share this Dispatch, and remind people that an observer standing in a hallway does not change who is allowed to vote.
Want to go deeper? See how the Justice Department describes its voting work.
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