Election 2016: How to Report Election Fraud, Poll Harassment, Voting Rights Abuse

ALEXANDRIA, VA -- Assistant U.S. Attorneys James P. Gillis, Randy Stoker and L. Margaret Harker have been appointed to serve as District Election Officers (DEO) for the Eastern District of Virginia, and will lead the efforts with the Justice Department’s nationwide Election Day Program for the upcoming general elections on Tuesday, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia announced Friday.

District Election Officers are responsible for overseeing the district’s handling of complaints of election fraud and voting rights abuses in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington, D.C.

“Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination,” U.S. Attorney Dana J. Boente said in the announcement. “They need to have that vote counted without it being stolen because of fraud. The Department of Justice will act promptly and aggressively to protect the integrity of the election process.”

In order to respond to complaints of election fraud or voting rights abuses on Tuesday, the DEOs will be on duty while the polls are open. From 6 a.m. to 8:30 a.m., and from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., any calls should be directed to 703-299-3700.
From 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., calls should be directed to the below phone numbers:

• Alexandria - Assistant U.S. Attorney James P. Gillis, 703-299-3700
• Norfolk and Newport News - Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy Stoker, 757-441-6331
• Richmond - Assistant U.S. Attorney L. Margaret Harker, 804-819-5400

Federal law protects against such crimes as intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. It also contains special protections for the rights of voters and provides that they can vote free from acts that intimidate or harass them.

For example, actions of persons designed to interrupt or intimidate voters at polling places by questioning or challenging them, or by photographing or videotaping them, under the pretext that these are actions to uncover illegal voting may violate federal voting rights law, the Office said. Federal law protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice.

The FBI will also 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 U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section in Washington, DC by phone at 1-800-253-3931 or (202) 307-2767, by fax at (202) 307-3961, by email to voting.section@usdoj.gov.

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