A Clark County judge on Monday, Nov. 2, kept in place a temporary restraining order aimed at alleged voter intimidation outside the Desert Breeze Community Center vote center in the southwest valley, and extended it through Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 3.
What the order does
District Judge Joe Hardy first issued the emergency order on Friday, Oct. 30, the last day of in-person early voting, after the ACLU of Nevada filed a complaint late Thursday, Oct. 29. According to News 3 and FOX5, the order treats the narrow walkway between the parking lot and the voting area as the vote center’s entrance, which means no electioneering is allowed within 100 feet of that path.
KTNV reported that the order also bars a woman who had been using a bullhorn near the site from harassing or intimidating voters, following voters while recording them, talking to voters going in or out, or threatening or assaulting anyone. The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that video of her yelling through the bullhorn outside the polling place had spread widely online.
What was alleged
The ACLU’s complaint alleges a pattern of people blocking the pathway, following and filming voters, making threats and, in one case, assaulting a voter with a disability. Those are allegations in a civil complaint. A Clark County spokesperson said the county has worked to manage crowding at the site, has said it will comply with the order, and said “the public should continue to feel safe exercising their right to vote.”
What it means for locals and visitors
Polls are open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday at Clark County vote centers, and you can vote at any of them, Desert Breeze included. If you plan to vote there, expect one entrance, a single walkway and possibly a line. Anyone who sees intimidation at a polling place can tell a poll worker or call the Clark County Election Department at 702-455-VOTE (8683). Call 911 if someone is in danger.
Sources
- News 3 (KSNV): Judge extends order over alleged voter intimidation at Clark County vote center
- FOX5: Judge extends restraining order against voter intimidation at Desert Breeze Community Center
- KTNV 13 Investigates
- Las Vegas Review-Journal: Judge bars bullhorn-wielding woman from intimidating Las Vegas voters