FL GOP Poll Watcher Allegedly Records Information On Cell Phone

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More allegations are surfacing against apparently untrained poll watchers, this time in Florida, where an early voter says a Republican poll watcher improperly used a cell phone to take pictures and record information.

David Woodward told TPMMuckraker that he went to Delray Beach City Hall yesterday afternoon to cast his ballot. There he says he observed a Republican poll watcher recording data on his cell phone from computer screens, information from a voter registration book and appeared to be taking pictures.

But he said the clerk who runs the polling station has denied that the man had a phone or that he was anywhere he wasn’t supposed to be. Woodward is not satisfied with the response he has received.

Andrew Katz, another early voter, told TPMMuckraker that he never met Woodward but backed up his story. He said the poll watcher’s actions “didn’t quite pass the smell test” and that there was a “certain amount of voter intimidation” involved in the poll watcher’s actions.

Katz described the poll watcher as a man who looked to be in his mid-50s with grey hair. He was holding the cell phone chest high, “essentially a position where he could enter information or take a photograph,” Katz said. There were signs that said there were no cell phones allowed in the area, Katz said.

The 22nd District in Florida, where the polling station in question is located, has been an important race for the Tea Party, said Woodward. Conservatives are backing Allen West who is running against Democrat Ron Klein. “The Tea Party is specifically targeting our polling stations for activities like this,” Woodward said.

West has met with lawyers from the Florida Chapter of the Republican National Lawyers Association, which has warned of “epidemic” voter fraud issues this year.

Woodward first recounted his story at the DailyKos:

While I waited, which was about another ten minutes I observed a gentleman standing behind all the voting officials with an “I Voted” sticker on and his cell phone open. He was recording data into his cell phone. Then, cell phone open he would walk over to the open computer screens with all the voter data displayed and record more data, then walk around the table to look at the info the Haitian man in front of me had written down on his registration form then back to his open cell phone to record more data. This happened to ALL of the people sitting at all four computers gathering info.

When I got in and sat down I immediately said “WHO IS THAT GUY AND WHY IS HE STANDING THERE LOGGING DATA INTO AN OPEN CELLPHONE.” I said, “IS HE TAKING PICTURES?” I jumped up and read his nametag. He was a Republican Poll Watcher. He walked around the table and was doing the same thing to me I saw him doing to the Haitian guy. I grabbed up my forms and insisted he step away. A couple people in charge gave me a yellow form to submit a complaint. I was shaking but I recorded his name and what he was doing and said it really upset me.

Calls to the Florida Division and Elections were not returned.

Check out TPMMuckraker’s full coverage of anti-voter fraud efforts here.

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