U.S. election officials are anticipating unprecedented efforts to disrupt the 2022 election, and putting battleground states on heightened alert.
Why it matters: Efforts to intimidate voters and spread misinformation can erode the public’s trust in the democratic process, and safety concerns are making it hard to recruit election workers in some states.
Zoom in: In Colorado, Pennsylvania and other states, officials report that election deniers are signing on as poll watchers, which could create tense situations at polling places.
The “greatest fear” is that election conspiracy theories “could incite somebody to do something violent,” said Matt Crane, the associate director for Colorado’s association of county clerks.
Threat level: The FBI and Department of Homeland Security issued two warnings earlier this month, as early voting began in states across the country, about threats to election workers and voter intimidation.
Most of the threats have come in seven states that experienced public disputes, recounts or audits in 2020 — Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Nevada, and Wisconsin, the FBI reports.
What they’re saying: “People whose minds have been warped by the Big Lie to believe that the 2020 election was stolen … might justify corrupt behavior or illegal behavior,” says Susan Greenhalgh, a senior adviser for election security for the nonprofit Free Speech for People.