Some U.S. states are sending strong signals to county and local officials who might be tempted to intervene illegally in the Nov. 5 election or refuse to certify results: Fail to do your duty and risk criminal charges or hefty financial penalties, Reuters reports, in a story that examines actions by officials in at least five of the seven battleground states that could determine the upcoming presidential election.
In those states, top election and law enforcement officials have investigated, indicted and even jailed officials who tried to interfere with the vote or delay certification of results. County officials have also been warned that failing to certify results on time could force their local governments to foot the bill for unnecessary audits or recounts. Trump’s denial of his defeat in 2020 still resonates, as officials step up oversight of local election reporting, with an eye to preventing unfounded claims of fraud from slowing the certification of election results -- which in turn could interfere with Congress’s certification of the presidential election results within today’s highly-charged political atmosphere.