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U.S. Justice Dept. warns states to tread rigorously in auditing elections
By Sarah N. Lynch
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Joe Biden’s administration on Wednesday issued authorized steerage aimed toward curbing voting rights abuses in U.S. states similar to Arizona, the place Republican officers launched a contentious audit in a failed bid to reverse former President Donald Trump’s 2020 election loss.
Within the steerage, the U.S. Justice Division raises issues in regards to the “uncommon second spherical of examinations” into 2020 election outcomes cropping up in numerous states despite the fact that not one of the prior state recounts had “produced proof of both wrongdoing or errors that casts any doubt on the end result of the nationwide election outcomes.”
Trump has falsely stated the election was stolen from him by widespread voting fraud, and his Republican allies sought on this foundation to undo his losses to Biden in key states. Quite a few states have handed new Republican-backed voting restrictions within the aftermath of Trump’s false claims.
The Justice Division additionally issued steerage laying out the federal voting rights legal guidelines governing elections in a direct response to states similar to Georgia which have, amongst different restrictions, restricted early voting and voting by mail.
“I feel the explanation we’re issuing this as steerage is to inform jurisdictions typically that we’re involved that in the event that they’re going to conduct these audits … they must adjust to federal legislation,” a Justice Division official advised reporters on Wednesday, talking on situation of anonymity. “This doc units down a marker.”
The authorized steerage fulfills a pledge that https://www.reuters.com/authorized/authorities/us-attorney-general-vows-aggressively-defend-voting-rights-2021-06-11 Lawyer Normal Merrick Garland made in June when he vowed to aggressively implement voting rights legal guidelines. Following that speech, the division sued Georgia, accusing the state of unlawfully violating the rights of Black voters with its new voting restrictions https://www.reuters.com/authorized/authorities/us-sue-georgia-over-restrictive-new-state-voting-law-source-2021-06-25.
In Could, Arizona halted plans to knock on voters’ doorways https://www.reuters.com/enterprise/authorized/auditors-halt-plans-knock-arizona-voters-doors-amid-justice-department-scrutiny-2021-05-10 as a part of the audit after a high official within the Justice Division’s Civil Rights Division warned that canvassing may run afoul of federal legal guidelines banning voter intimidation.
Trump allies in Pennsylvania https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-ally-pennsylvania-pushes-arizona-style-audit-2020-election-2021-07-07 and Florida – different states additionally gained by Biden – have lately stated they’re hoping to launch audits much like Arizona’s.
The official who spoke to reporters on Wednesday stated the Justice Division has not despatched out any extra letters for the reason that Arizona one however has “spoken to individuals in numerous jurisdictions about their issues with what’s being proposed in these jurisdictions.”
(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; Extra reporting by Mark Hosenball; Modifying by Will Dunham)
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