So-called “poll observers” are out in force this Election Day, watching for potential fraud and irregularities, but who’s watching the watchers?
In Cuyahoga County, a Board of Elections spokesperson said they had, what he called, “poll rovers,” paid staff members who would check out polling places in person in response to any reported concerns.
In Lorain County, Board of Elections Director Paul Adams said they also had staffers monitoring complaints, but would also rely on the public to call in those complaints and questions.
Adams said those poll watchers, who are volunteers brought in by political parties, were only supposed to watch and not harass or interrupt the voting process.
“If there’s a situation where a poll worker is having a conversation with a voter,” Adams said, “That is not an instance where an observer can then intervene.”
News 5 spoke with several voters at the Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church on Pearl Avenue who said they had confidence in the election system.
“From what I’ve seen before and today, I didn’t see no cheating going on because I was watching out for that,” Trump voter Sonya Calderone said.
“I love the system they have now, and I believe it’s a safe-proof system,” Clinton voter Marquis L. Kimbrough Sr. said.
