By Ned Parker and Sarah N. Lynch
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Arizona officials have asked the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate a case of possible voter intimidation after a group of people followed and filmed a voter in Maricopa County dropping off a ballot at a drop box for the midterm elections.
A spokesperson for the Arizona secretary of state’s office, Sophia Solis, on Thursday said her office had also asked the state’s attorney general to look into the incident. The Justice Department confirmed it had received the referral, but declined further comment.
“The voter was approached and followed by a group of individuals when the voter was trying to drop off their ballot at an early voting drop box on Monday,” Solis said.
The attorney general’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
In a report filed with the Arizona secretary of state’s office obtained by Reuters, the voter said the incident occurred Monday evening while early voting at Mesa juvenile court.
“There’s a group of people hanging out near the ballot dropbox filming and photographing my wife and I as we approached the dropbox and accusing us of being a mule,” wrote the voter, whose name was redacted, adding that the group also took photos of their license plate and followed them to their car.
The “mule” accusation was an apparent reference to a documentary directed by conservative commentator Dinesh D’Souza falsely claiming that President Joe Biden’s victories in swing states could be attributed to 2,000 people – or “mules” – who were hired by unnamed nonprofits to conduct “ballot trafficking.” The claim, while false, has attracted support among some supporters of former President Donald Trump.
Since his 2020 election defeat, Trump has continually voiced false claims that his loss was the result of widespread fraud, though reviews by multiple courts, state election officials and members of his own administration rejected his claims.
But the belief has taken root. Some 51% of Americans, and 71% of Republicans, say they believe that voter fraud is a widespread problem, according to Reuters/Ipsos polling.
Officials in at least three additional states – North Carolina, Colorado and Nevada – have reported incidents of voter intimidation this election cycle, though it is unclear if any have led to a criminal referral.
In North Carolina alone, officials noted unusually aggressive observers during May’s primary elections in 16 counties. Officials in Arizona have previously said they were aware of reports of voters being monitoring when dropping off votes.
Reuters reported earlier in October that many incidents of alleged voter intimidation are being carried out by an expanding group of thousands of grassroots poll observers, many of whom have been recruited by prominent Republican Party figures and activists, a trend that has worried elections experts and officials.
In dozens of cases throughout the country, an onslaught of intimidation and threats has pushed elections officials to resign.
(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch and Ned Parker; Writing and additional reporting by Gram Slattery; Editing by Scott Malone and Daniel Wallis)
