The email included contact information for the campaigns of Elizabeth Warren, Michael Bennet, Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar, and Deval Patrick. Several campaigns confirmed privately that they are involved.
The campaigns of Bernie Sanders, Tulsi Gabbard and Tom Steyer will also have a presence in the ad hoc operation. according to a source with knowledge of the plans.
Andrew Yang’s campaign is not actively involved, but has been in touch with the group.
While the DNC has offered voter protection assistance to every campaign in New Hampshire — and several, including the Sanders campaign, are participating in some capacity with the DNC — several campaigns were wary of working with the national committee because of the requirements to take part, said the source.
To participate in the DNC’s voter protection effort, campaigns had to agree that only the DNC could give marching orders to volunteers if they encountered issues affecting the ability to vote. The worry among some campaigns was that those affiliated with a candidate would have to observe silently, instead of intervening, if there is an issue.
The ad hoc voter protection group was in the works before the chaotic Iowa caucuses, but the state and national party’s handling of the situation did little to inspire faith.
Democrats are particularly focused on voter protection because in a crowded, high-stakes primary, the winner could be decided by a slim margin.
„Republicans have made their strategy to block access to the polls abundantly clear. For the first time, the DNC is ensuring there is a coordinated voter protection effort during the primary for any campaign that needs it,” DNC spokesperson Maya Hixson said in a statement to POLITICO.
The New Hampshire Democratic Party knocked the neutral boiler room as a „four-campaign effort“ and said it will be running its own voter protection effort.
„This four-campaign effort does not include all of the Democratic presidential campaigns and as we are neutral in all primaries, we were unable to participate unless all of the campaigns were invited and included, and that was not the case,“ said New Hampshire Democratic Party spokesperson Holly Shulman. „On election night, the NHDP will be running, as it always does in each election, our own boiler room with NHDP staff, DNC staff, and NH attorneys.“
An issue that is top of mind in New Hampshire is a 2018 residency law that changed the legal definition of a New Hampshire resident and made it more difficult for out-of-state students to vote. If a college student wants to vote, they need a New Hampshire license and to register their car in the state. Previously, New Hampshire allowed students and other part-time residents to vote.
Voter protection attorneys will also watch for long lines at the polls, parking and traffic issues at voting sites, and the inconsistent enforcement of identification requirements.
The ad hoc voter protection group asked volunteers to take primary day off from work, participate in a training and remain stationed at a polling place for the full day.
Source: politico.com
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