Prince George's, Fairfax and Prince William counties to see DOJ election monitors, officials say
Virginia voters head to polls in pivotal midterm races
Polls opened across Virginia on Tuesday as voters cast ballots in midterm elections featuring competitive congressional races and three proposed state constitutional amendments.
PRINCE GEORGE'S CO., Md. - Prince George’s County in Maryland, along with Fairfax and Prince William counties in Virginia, are among the local jurisdictions where the Justice Department has deployed election personnel as part of a historic nationwide monitoring effort on Election Day.
The deployment is part of a operation sending approximately 1,000 monitors and observers to all 50 states for the first time, marking the largest monitoring effort in the department's history. Elsewhere in Virginia, monitors were also sent to Charlottesville and Virginia Beach.
Coordinated by the Civil Rights Division, the monitoring teams include personnel from the division, other Justice Department components, U.S. Attorney’s Offices and federal observers from the Office of Personnel Management.
RELATED: Department of Justice deploys election monitors to all 50 states for midterms
Staff will maintain contact with state and local election officials throughout the day, officials say.
Monitors are tasked with checking compliance with federal voting rights statutes under the division’s jurisdiction. The Voting Section enforces civil protections under the Voting Rights Act, the National Voter Registration Act, the Help America Vote Act, the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, and the Civil Rights Acts.
Additionally, the Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act to guarantee equal voting access for individuals with disabilities. The Criminal Section enforces federal statutes prohibiting voter intimidation and suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.
The Justice Department advised that any disruptions at polling sites should be reported immediately to local election officials. Voters with questions or complaints can also reach the department's election issues hotline at 1-800-253-3931.
The Source: Information in this article comes from the Department of Justice.