The main campaign committee for Senate Democrats has fired an employee who was accused of “tampering” with a ballot box in Montana, a must-win state for the party to keep its majority in the upper chamber.
The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) canned Laszlo Gendler after he was recorded walking up to a ballot box in Glacier County Sunday, shaking it briefly and then leaving the scene, according to an alarming video obtained by Fox News.
In the video, a young man, later identified by the office of Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen as Gendler, approaches the box and tries to move it slightly with both hands before giving up and taking out his cell phone. He then seemingly takes a picture or video of the location.
“Poll observers are instructed not to touch ballot boxes. This individual was attempting to ensure a new ballot box was secured to the wall, neither the ballot box nor ballots were affected,” said DSCC spokesman David Bergstein in a statement to Fox. “Their actions were not in accordance with our procedures and out of an abundance of caution they will no longer be doing this work moving forward.”
The DSCC paid Gendler $42,909.20 in salary and travel expenses between Sept. 15, 2023, and Aug. 30, 2024, per Federal Election Commission filings.
The most recent salary payment of $1,824.60 was made to Gendler on Sept. 13, the latest monthly filing shows.
“The suspect and details were turned over to Glacier County law enforcement,” Richie Melby, a spokesman for the secretary of state’s office told The Post. “Our elections director was pleased that the individual was not able to remove the ballot box from the wall, although, as the election administrator signified in her email, the activity was certainly highly suspicious and concerning.”
Glacier county election administrator Crystal Cole had flagged the video to the secretary of state’s office, citing concerns that Gendler — and by extension the state’s Democratic Party — was “tampering” with the box.
“Laslo [sic] with the MT Dem Party was on camera tampering with the Box [sic],” she wrote in a Monday email to election officials. “I did call him to ask what his reasoning was, he stated ‘they’ sent him to the location to see how secure the box was.”
Cole said state Democrats hadn’t given her office a heads-up about Gendler’s visit or separate plans to contact a local college “to see if voters can park in their parking lot.”
“The MT Dem party did not reach out to me in any way to ask for their assistance in this matter,” she added. “(I informed Laslo that I was already in the process of talking to the college for this very same matter, and that I would be contacting the [Secretary of State] as this seems like a situation that could get me in trouble as the administrator, as I believe I cannot accept their assistance lawfully).”
Republican Tim Sheehy, a former Navy SEAL, is polling well ahead of Democratic Sen. Jon Tester in the Treasure State and is currently expected to triumph over the seven-fingered dirt farmer this November.
“This video is incredibly damning,” National Republican Senatorial Committee spokeswoman Maggie Abboud claimed in a statement. “Jon Tester and Senate Democrats know they are losing to Tim Sheehy, so it appears they are trying to cheat in the election.”
A Sheehy win would give Republicans a one-seat majority in the upper chamber, so long as GOP West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice replaces retiring independent Sen. Joe Manchin and no incumbents unexpectedly lose their seats.
Incumbent GOP Rep. Ryan Zinke is running for re-election in Montana’s First Congressional District, which includes Glacier County.
His race against Democrat Monica Tranel is also ranked “lean Republican” by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.
The Post has reached out to Gendler, Bergstein, the Montana Democrat Party and the office of Glacier County Sheriff Maurice Redhorn for comment.
