SAVANNAH, GA: Two Assistant U.S. Attorneys have been appointed to lead efforts in the Southern District of Georgia related to the U.S. Department of Justice’s 2022 Statewide Election Day program.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Channell V. Singh and Jeremiah L. Johnson have been appointed district election officers (DEOs) for the Southern District of Georgia, said David H. Estes, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. In this capacity, they are responsible for overseeing the district’s handling of election day complaints about voting rights concerns, threats of violence against election officials or staff, and reports of voter fraud in consultation with the Department of Justice headquarters in Washington, DC
“Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination, and that vote must be counted in a fair and free election,” said US Attorney Estes. “Similarly, election officials and staff must be able to serve without being subjected to unlawful threats of violence. Our office will work tirelessly to protect the integrity of the electoral process.”
The Department of Justice plays an important role in deterring and countering electoral discrimination and intimidation, threats of violence against poll officials and poll workers, and voter fraud. The Department will address these violations wherever they occur. The Department’s longstanding Election Day program furthers these goals and seeks to ensure public confidence in the election process by providing local contact points within the Department for the public to report potential violations of federal elections law.
Federal law protects against crimes such as threatening to use force against polling officials or personnel, intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, spoofing voters, altering vote counts, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for Voters against their will or without their input. It also includes specific protections for voters’ rights and provides that they may vote free from interference, including intimidation and other acts designed to prevent or deter people from voting or voting for the candidate of their choice . The Voting Rights Act protects voters’ right to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice when voters need assistance because of a disability or inability to read or write English.
To respond to complaints of voting rights concerns and voter fraud during the upcoming election and to ensure that such complaints are escalated to the appropriate authorities, District Election Officers in the Southern District of Georgia will be on duty while polling stations are open and can be contacted at 912- 652-4422 can be reached.
In addition, the FBI will have special agents available at every field office and resident agency across the country to take allegations of voter fraud and other election abuses on Election Day. The local FBI field office is available to the public at 770-216-3000.
Complaints about possible violations of federal voting rights laws may be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by calling 800-253-3931 or by completing the complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/.
In the event of a violent or intimidating crime, please call 911 immediately and before contacting federal authorities. State and local police have primary responsibility for polling stations and almost always have a faster response capacity in the event of an emergency.
