U.S. Justice Department to Monitor Polls in Providence & Pawtucket

WASHINGTON, DC – The feds are coming to Little Rhody to monitor the polls in Providence and in Pawtucket, according to a Justice Department press release.

"The Justice Department announced today," the release said, "that its Civil Rights Division plans to deploy more than 500 personnel to 67 jurisdictions in 28 states for the Nov. 8, 2016, general election."

Only one Bay State municipality, Quincy, made the list, and no cities and towns in Maine, New Hampshire or Vermont are included. But the Civil Rights Division will be in six Connecticut communities.

The jurisdictions are:

• Bethel Census Area, Alaska;
• Dillingham Census Area, Alaska;
• Kusilvak Census Area, Alaska;
• Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska;
• Maricopa County, Arizona;
• Navajo County, Arizona;
• Alameda County, California;
• Napa County, California;
• Siskiyou County, California;
• East Hartford, Connecticut;
• Farmington, Connecticut;
• Hartford, Connecticut;
• Middletown, Connecticut;
• New Britain, Connecticut;
• Newington, Connecticut;
• West Hartford, Connecticut;
• Hillsborough County, Florida;
• Lee County, Florida;
• Miami-Dade County, Florida;
• Orange County, Florida;
• Palm Beach County, Florida;
• Fulton County, Georgia;
• Gwinnett County, Georgia;
• Hancock County, Georgia;
• Chicago, Illinois;
• Cook County, Illinois;
• Finney County, Kansas;
• Orleans Parish, Louisiana;
• Quincy, Massachusetts;
• Dearborn Heights, Michigan;
• Detroit, Michigan;
• Hamtramck, Michigan;
• St. Louis, Missouri;
• Douglas County, Nebraska;
• Mineral County, Nevada;
• Washoe County, Nevada;
• Middlesex County, New Jersey;
• Cibola County, New Mexico;
• Kings County, New York;
• Orange County, New York;
• Queens County, New York;
• Cumberland County, North Carolina;
• Forsyth County, North Carolina;
• Mecklenburg County, North Carolina;
• Robeson County, North Carolina;
• Wake County, North Carolina;
• Benson County, North Dakota;
• Rolette County, North Dakota;
• Cuyahoga County, Ohio;
• Franklin County, Ohio;
• Hamilton County, Ohio;
• Allegheny County, Pennsylvania;
• Lehigh County, Pennsylvania;
• Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania;
• Pawtucket, Rhode Island;
• Providence, Rhode Island;
• Bennett County, South Dakota;
• Jackson County, South Dakota;
• Oglala Lakota County, South Dakota;
• Shelby County, Tennessee;
• Dallas County, Texas;
• Harris County, Texas;
• Waller County, Texas;
• San Juan County, Utah;
• Fairfax County, Virginia;
• Prince William County, Virginia, and
• Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Atty. Gen. Loretta E. Lynch said, “The bedrock of our democracy is the right to vote, and the Department of Justice works tirelessly to uphold that right not only on Election Day, but every day." On Nov. 8, it will work like this:

"On Election Day itself, lawyers in the Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section will staff a hotline starting in the early hours of the morning, and just as we have sent election monitors in prior elections, we will continue to have a robust election monitors program in place on election day," she said. "The department is deeply committed to the fair and unbiased application of our voting rights laws and we will work tirelessly to ensure that every eligible person that wants to do so is able to cast a ballot.”

Rhode Island requires voters to present a photo id, but people with improper documentation can still cast a provisional ballot, according to the Secretary of State's website.

Here's how to complain:

If you're turned away at the polls:

"Leading up to and throughout Election Day, Civil Rights Division staff members will be available by telephone to receive complaints related to possible violations of the federal voting rights laws (Toll free at 1-800-253-3931 or 202-307-2767 or TTY 202-305-0082). In addition, individuals may also report such complaints by fax to 202-307-3961, by email tovoting.section@usdoj.gov and by a complaint form on the department’s website: www.justice.gov/crt/votercomplaint."

If you spot election fraud:

Also, on election fraud, "complaints may be directed to any of the local U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, the local FBI offices or the Public Integrity Section at 202-514-1412. A list of U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and their telephone numbers can be found atwww.justice.gov/usao/find-your-united-states-attorney. A list of FBI offices and accompanying telephone numbers can be found at www.fbi.gov/contact-us."

If there's violence or a disruption at the polling place:

As always, complaints related to disruption at a polling place should always be reported immediately to local election officials (including officials in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. They should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.