One in three local election officials have experienced threats, harassment, and abuse, a new poll shows.
According to the poll from the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law, 38% of poll workers said they have faced mistreatment at work, which is an increase from the 30% reported in 2023.
They said they most commonly receive threats in person or via phone calls. Forty-five percent of poll workers have received threats on social media. Half of the threats to workers go unreported.
Seventy percent of election officials believe threats have increased since the 2020 election, while 27% believe they stayed about the same.
Poll workers not only are concerned about their own safety, but also the safety of their colleagues. More than half of respondents said they were worried about a co-worker’s safety.
Threats are driving poll workers to leave their jobs. Thirty-four percent of people polled said they know someone or many people who have le …