Module 7

Poll watching is an allowed practice whose purpose is to make sure that everything is working as it is supposed to during the election, and that everyone who is voting is in their right. I honestly do feel like it is important to have some type of monitor during the election to make sure the process is going smoothly. The person should only really be in charge of organizing the lines, and setting up, and checking people in when they get to their designated voting station, but I don't agree with the animosity that these "Poll Watchers" have had while in that position. The problem with this practice is the voter intimidation that can happen because of this allowed practice. The fear also comes from the great divide between the american people right now, the hostility that certain voters have had against their ‘rival’ voters. This tension is what makes it a very scary thing for people who are planning to vote. 

The rules about poll watching have shafted throughout the years, and these rules have varied since their first records of poll watching that goes back to the 18th century. Since then, they have been expected to point out people they suspect are not being honest (who they are, if legal voters, falsifying votes). This can be problematic if people are just going based on biases to ‘point out suspicious characters’ which has proven to be problematic. In 1999, we saw this problem arise when 40 Arab-Americans were asked to prove under oath their citizenship, which was an example of racial profiling. Not only can it cause racial biases, but when you then add the number of Ballot Security, which was at one time monitored from becoming excessive, has now been allowed to multiply in numbers in communities that they wish. This is a problem because you will most likely see an influx of this ballot security task force in minority communities which will most likely also serve as a form of subconscious intimidation of voters. This problem is not new either, in 1981 this became a problem in New Jersey which is why the RNC began to limit them, but since this arrangement expired in 2018, the people are now running into that same fear of that problem. 

Another great fear with these poll watchers is that they can be paid to open ballots and count them. This is a great worry because although you want to assume everyone has an honest and good hearted way of being, the reality is that that is not always the case. This is a growing fear now more than ever as a result of the Covid-19 Pandemic. This pandemic has made it almost a reality that almost everyone will have to submit their votes via mail. Due to the ongoing fear of the virus, the need for social distance, and the fact that the government has yet to provide a safe manner to vote in person, voting by mail is a reality. This is why the fear for the votes not being tampered with is at its all time high. Not only that but we also have POTUS telling the people that voting by mail shouldn't be done because they will be tampered with. The time for voter safety has never been so threatened, not only because of the pandemic but because of the “poll watcher”.