Maine tightens election laws to protect poll workers

(The Center Square) – Individuals who threaten or intimidate Maine election workers could face criminal charges under a proposal sent to Gov. Janet Mills for consideration.

The legislation, which was approved by the state Senate on Tuesday, will make it a misdemeanor for anyone to interfere “by force, violence, intimidation or any physical act” with a state, county or local election official in the performance of their duty. The House of Representatives previously approved the measure.

Backers of the legislation say toughening the penalties would improve safety for election workers, who have increasingly faced threats and intimidation from politicians and voters upset over the outcomes of recent elections.

The bill’s primary sponsor, Rep. Bruce White, D-Waterville, said he filed the measure in response to an “alarming increase in the number of death threats and violence made against election workers and officials across the country – including here in our home state.”

White said the changes would “protect those who tirelessly work to ensure all of us are able to cast our ballot on Election Day.”

The legislation is also backed by Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, who has also cited a rise in documented threats against the election officials throughout the country.

“Our right to vote is enabled by our municipal clerks,” Bellows said in recent testimony on the bill. “When our municipal clerks are threatened, especially in the course of performance of their official duties, our democracy itself is threatened.”

Originally, the legislation called for making it a felony to interfere with the election officials, but lawmakers scaled it back to a misdemeanor charge during committee hearings on the bill.

Civil liberties groups and others argued that felony charges wouldn’t make election workers safer or improve integrity any safer than a misdemeanor charge, but could increase the number of people in jail.

A fiscal note attached to the bill estimated that the changes won’t require additional funding from the state but could increase the amount of money from fines if people are charged with violating the proposed law.

Supporters say at least two Maine election clerks have been threatened in recent years, but haven’t provided details about the incidents or say if they are being investigated.

A June 2020 report by the Brennan Center for Justice found that one in three election workers feel unsafe on the job, while many others are concerned about threats to their lives.

Last year, the U.S. Department of Justice created a special task force to deal with the rising number of reported threats against election workers.

Many of the incidents were fueled by former President Donald Trump’s false claims that there was widespread voter fraud in the 2020 presidential elections, the agency said.

Under state law, Mills has 10 days to sign the bill, veto it, or allow it to become a law without her signature.

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