Melissa Kono has been training election workers in Wisconsin for a decade.

The election town clerk in Burnside said his approach focuses on ensuring employees understand election rules, such as photo ID requirements and voter eligibility. But in recent years, he says, the focus has shifted to helping election workers deal with threats, including identifying what might pose a real threat and how to de-escalate situations.

Kono said they were “very, very concerned” about receiving threats at polling places news week. “I think some people are afraid.”

He said he started providing workers with information about how to deal with polling place emergencies (like extreme weather or fires) about five years ago.

“Now a slide in my PowerPoint explains how to deal with general emergencies, and there’s also a section on dealing with threats,” he said. Many of the questions he is asked during training sessions are about dealing with conflicts and responding to voters who complain about fraud.

Kono said he was “very concerned” about the safety of election workers and clerks.

“I feel a huge responsibility to keep workers safe and properly educate them on what to expect and how to handle it,” he said. “But there are things I can’t even guess.”

He is aware of some people who are now choosing to serve as election officials because of security risks. “Some really good people were discouraged from participating in the process,” he said.

Their fears are far from unfounded.

The job of running elections has become increasingly dangerous since the 2020 election. Since then, threats against election offices and staff have been increasing, mostly from those acting against the former President. Donald Trump‘s baseless accusations of widespread voter fraud cost him re-election.

Nearly a quarter (38 percent) of local election officials have experienced threats, harassment or abuse while doing their jobs, according to a survey conducted earlier this year by the Brennan Center for Justice, a left-leaning nonprofit organization. The survey found 54 percent are concerned about the safety of their colleagues and employees, while 28 percent are worried about their family or loved ones being threatened or harassed.

Recent concerning incidents include reports that letters filled with white powder were sent to election officials in more than 15 states. In Kansas, workers were told to wear masks and gloves when handling incoming mail after a suspicious postcard was delivered to a polling office.

Election officials have also been the target of attacks, such as fake 911 calls designed to provoke an aggressive response from police officers.

Kono told news week He said he was particularly concerned about the dangers of “spoiling” for election workers.

“The fact that we now have to question the call for help because help may not come because law enforcement doesn’t know if it’s a legitimate threat or if someone is calling it a hoax… That’s horrifying to me,” he said. .

As a result, officials across the country are preparing for Election Day by increasing security to keep workers and voters safe at polling places.

Meanwhile, Ministry of JusticeThe Election Threats Task Force has been investigating threats against election workers since its establishment in June 2021 and has led to the conviction of 13 people.

Among them: a Florida man who entered a polling place and threatened to “blow up the polls” and a Texas man who advocated “mass shootings of poll workers and election workers” at polling places and deemed the results questionable.

“The Department of Justice aggressively investigates and prosecutes those who threaten public officials who administer our elections, and we will continue to do so in the coming weeks,” Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said in a statement last week. “For our democracy to work, Americans who serve the public must be able to do their jobs without fearing for their lives.”

Security concerns have led some to conclude that the best course of action is to forego accepting voters altogether.

In Houston, an elementary school will not be a polling place after parents voiced concerns about potential risks to students. Arizona’s largest public school district made the same decision for all its schools after a chaotic election last November in which some voters confronted school staff mistaking them for election workers. Washington Post.

“Threats against election officials and workers are increasing, and it is critical to take them seriously,” said Robert Pape, a professor of political science at the University of Chicago and director of the Chicago Security and Threats Project. news week. “In fact, the threat may grow not only on Election Day but also through the official tabulation and state certification of vote counts.”

Risks to workers are highest in battleground states, where margins are expected to be extremely tight, he said.

Pape pointed to a September survey by the Chicago Security and Threats Project; that poll found that about 6 percent of Americans (equivalent to 15 million adults) believe using force to bring Trump back to the White House is justified. 8 percent (about 21 million adults) say using force to prevent Trump from winning a second term is justified.

“Unstable individuals who may be on the verge of violence for their own psychosocial reasons may be driven to election-related violence by believing they are acting for a popular cause,” he said.

Pape suggested governors of seven battleground states produce a joint video condemning political violence. “Political discourse can escalate violence, but it can also prevent it,” he said.

Robert Shapiro, a political science professor at Columbia University, said election officials should ensure adequate law enforcement or other security guards are present at polling places and “make it known that no threats will be tolerated.”

“It goes without saying that in states that allow guns, guns should not be allowed within a certain distance of polling places,” said Shapiro, one of the authors. Hate Speech and Political Violence: Far-Right Discourse from the Tea Party to the Uprisingsaid Newsweek.

“If there are concerns about voter fraud or voter suppression, there should be clear rules on how this will be monitored to reassure those concerned about fraud and voter suppression.”

National Institute of Policing published a report earlier this year Guidance on how civil servants can more effectively protect the public during elections.

“Local leaders have been preparing for months to ensure public safety during the election cycle, including reviewing policies, updating training among officers, strengthening mutual aid agreements, communicating the importance of law enforcement’s role in protecting the public regardless of political affiliation, and reaching out to communities,” NPI President Jim Burch said. “To give confidence about their security,” he said. news week.

Many law enforcement officials “recognized the need to assume additional responsibilities, including security at ballot drop-off sites, vote-counting facilities, and in some cases, playing a role in combating misinformation and disinformation related to public safety and security.”