UPDATED: Vladimir Putin may be up to his old election interference tricks again, but America appears more prepared than ever to pull the plug on any Russian threats as millions vote today.
Following up on warnings Monday night from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of disruption efforts from Russia and Iran, federal agencies and metropolitan police forces are keeping their eyes peeled and officers on the street.
In Georgia, DeKalb County elections officials said that they had received bomb threats at seven locations, with attorneys seeking to extend voting hours because of the disruption. The bomb threats follow those earlier in the day that temporarily closed polling places in Fulton County.
“We are poised to respond to any incident around the election,” an LAPD spokesperson told Deadline this afternoon as long lines emerged at polling stations across the city and county in the tight race between Donald Trump and California native Vice President Kamala Harris.
Opening its Operations Center this morning, the City of Angels’ cops will be on the streets and in cruisers in force around polling places and other potential hot button areas, sources tell me. As the sun goes down, the LAPD plan to deploy additional forces along with the Sheriff’s department and other law enforcement agencies in a preventative move against any disturbance. The L.A. County Sheriff’s department is responsible for the movement of ballot boxes to counting centers.
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The LAPD will have “maximum deployment on Election Day to ensure the safety of Angelenos and to hold people accountable for any unrest or destruction of property,” Mayor Karen Bass’ office said in a statement Tuesday. In that context and reminiscent of the upheavals of 2020, businesses, hotels and others in some areas of the city have been pulling down metal rolling shutters and boarding up windows today – like the Roosevelt Hotel on Hollywood Blvd.
Earlier Tuesday, bomb threats against several polling places in Georgia saw Etris Community Center and Gullatt Elementary in Union City, just outside of Atlanta, closed for short spell. The shutdown was short lived, but officials insist the Fulton County Department of Registration & Elections would extend voting hours to make up for the closure in the predominantly African American neighborhood.
“The Fulton County Police Department has responded to multiple calls regarding threats at Fulton County Polling Places since polls opened this morning, ” Atlanta police passed on to Deadline a statement from the FCPD. “We have investigated each of these and found no active threats. We will continue to remain vigilant.”
“Disruption of the voting process is a crime and individuals found to be making disruptive threats will face charges,” the FCPD added.
Later on Election Day, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said: “About that Russia hoax and that bomb scare, I just want to make sure everyone understands Georgia is not going to be intimidated. Russia has decided to pick on the wrong Georgia. They need to pick on the other one in the Black Sea.”
Well known for being the guy then President Trump called in late 2020 in the hopes he could “find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have” to deliver the Peach State to the incumbent over eventual winner Joe Biden, Raffensperger offered no details of Russian involvement in the Georgia polls closure.
Having been “made aware of two instances of its name and insignia being misused in promoting false narratives surrounding the election,” the FBI went on social media Tuesday to scale down any fears voters had or any points the Kremlin thought they may have put on the board.
In the battleground state of Pennsylvania, an election safety task force has been formed that includes the Philadelphia Police Department, Philadelphia Sheriff’s Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
When it comes to voting, “Everybody in this city is working and has been working for months to make sure that there will be nothing tough in that experience and nothing to fear in that experience,” District Attorney Larry Krasner told reporters on Monday. “But I want to be clear: Anybody who thinks it’s time to play militia, f*ck around and find out.” He added: “We cannot forget the reality of what occurred on January 6th. We cannot forget the reality that there is controversy about elections in the United States, and we cannot forget the reality that it is our job to make sure, in a non partisan way, that every vote is counted.”
Residents of New York City will see at least two officers at each polling station, Mayor Eric Adams announced today. “There may be more depending on what we see and assess,” noted NYPD Acting Chief of Staff Tarik Sheppard on local Big Apple TV today of the force’s presence. “Our joint operations center has a limited operation today where we have some of our partners in there monitoring how it goes and if we need to add resources, we will,” Sheppard stated of assistance from the Bureau, Homeland Security and others.
Still, not all of the battles to ensure voter safety and that votes are counted are happening on the streets.
A federal judge in Georgia just tossed out an attempt by Republicans to disregard a portion of absentee votes from seven Democratic stronghold counties. U.S. District Judge R. Stan Baker, a Trump appointee, issued a ruling blasting the GOP move for containing “no supporting facts” in a blatant effort to “tip the scales of this election by discriminating against” non-Republican voters.
