A New Yorker serving as a first-time volunteer attorney assisting the Republican National Committee’s ballot-security operation in the state had a “hostile” and “disappointing” experience during early voting this weekend that “made my blood boil.”
Throughout his visits to 16 different polling sites across Dutchess and Orange counties on the final days of early voting, the 32-year-old attorney discovered “most of the polling sites were very unfriendly to me when they learned I was there as an attorney helping out the RNC.”
“You could feel the hostility right away when you mention you work with the RNC. They act defensively and put their guard up — you could see their demeanor change,” he told The Post.
It was so adversarial in Dutchess County that “one polling site attempted to restrict me to an area by the entrance where I wasn’t even able to see the ballot machines,” fumed the lawyer who was trained on election law. “That’s not the rule — it defeats the purpose of being a poll watcher.”
The millennial lawyer, who wants his name withheld for fear of retaliation, revealed a level of “hostility” at most sites that shocked him.
“I argued with them ,and they still refused to let me walk anywhere away from the [arbitrarily designated] area,” said the lawyer, who immediately called his RNC contact. It might have done the trick.
“I think the call alone scared them because after I got off the phone they allowed me to walk around to observe.”
The Poll Watching Certificate issued to him — pursuant to Election Law Section 8-500 — means he can serve as a watcher at any polling place. And since he’s a New York state resident and licensed to practice law here, he’s further allowed to serve as a watcher in any polling place.
But that didn’t stop some polling places from pushing back against the volunteer attorney, with “multiple” sites claiming he couldn’t get close enough to the check-in tables.
“I know I was allowed so I just pushed back,” he said. “If you aren’t assertive with them, they will walk right over you and prevent you from doing your job. It’s ridiculous.”
The pushback escalated so much that one site tried to reject his poll-watcher certificate because he lived outside the county.
“I explained to them that I am a licensed New York attorney and I’m allowed to visit sites outside of my own county,” said the lawyer, noting a similar disturbing pattern. “A few polling sites did similar things.”
The young attorney admitted the dubious shenanigans he experienced firsthand reinforced why he became a volunteer in the first place. “My only goal is protecting the process.”
“The fact that they were hostile to me, and the one place that didn’t want me to roam, the question it raises is, ‘Why?’”
The RNC’s Election Integrity Department’s “Protect the Vote” initiative appealed to the young lawyer. “This is the exact reason why this initiative was enacted in the first place – it helps keep everyone honest.”
“Ensuring the election integrity of early voting and Election Day is one of the most critical aspects of this year’s election,” insisted the attorney.
“When people see that we are doing everything we can to protect election integrity, not only does it alleviate voters’ concerns about potential election fraud, but it in fact ensures that we have a fair and honest election—regardless of the outcome.”
“It’s the process that must be protected, not any one particular candidate.”
The New Yorker said he was moved by talking to voters from different states over the past year who had “concerns” and “fear” their vote “wouldn’t matter.”
“They believe the voting process wasn’t secure,” he said, acknowledging this as his motivation for volunteering. “They question the point of voting if it’s not secure.”
As far as the cold shoulder — and worse — he discovered this weekend, he’s trying to look at it philosophically.
“Perhaps they just don’t know the election laws that well,” said the lawyer, noting he’s “giving them the benefit of the doubt.”
But the “worst-case scenario is that they were deliberately restricting me.”
“You’d expect that they’d welcome you — to be part of the election process. But it just reinforced the need for poll watchers.”
