The Justice Department announced yesterday it will monitor the 2024 general election in Portage County, Ohio, following suggestions by the local sheriff that residents keep track of people who display signs for Kamala Harris. Via HuffPost:
The county sits east of Akron and is home to roughly 160,000 people. It leans conservative, having gone for former President Donald Trump in both the 2016 and 2020 cycles in addition to now-Sen. JD Vance in 2022. “Voters in Portage County have raised concerns about intimidation resulting from the surveillance and the collection of personal information regarding voters, as well as threats concerning the electoral process,” the department said in a statement.
It did not provide further information on the specific concerns but noted the department “regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.” In mid-September, county Sheriff Bruce D. Zuchowski appeared to suggest in a Facebook post that residents make lists of any neighbors displaying signs in support of Harris.
“When people ask me...What’s gonna happen if the Flip - Flopping, Laughing Hyena Wins?? I say...write down all the addresses of the people who had her signs in their yards,” Zuchowski wrote, according to USA Today. “Sooo...when the Illegal human ‘Locust’ (which she supports!) Need places to live...We’ll already have the addresses of their New families...who supported their arrival!”
