Red, White & Coup: Threats of Violence Around the 2024 Election
Extremist attempts to incite fear and division through conspiracy theories, lies and possible violence are designed to undermine democratic participation. Voters need to understand what credible threats of violence look like and when those threats may occur. We have already seen reports of arson attacks on ballot drop boxes in the Pacific Northwest and far-right individuals accosting poll workers at early-voting locations across the country.
It is utterly chilling and inexcusable that extremist forces would conspire to intimidate communities from voting and threaten the peaceful transition of power. With the possibility of weeks of uncertainty as votes are counted, states’ electors are submitted and Congress ultimately certifies the results, the nation will remain on high alert for the foreseeable future.
As you vote and take part in conversations around the outcome, we urge you to stay vigilant against potential physical and digital threats in your community. It’s also important to remember that disinformation will be more prevalent than ever during the period of uncertainty following Election Day since social-media platforms have failed to install adequate safeguards — and traditional news media are prone to sensationalizing stories to keep people from turning off the TV.
Vigilance in the face of intimidation
On Oct. 30, Free Press’ Nora Benavidez moderated a discussion among election-integrity, civil-rights and anti-extremism experts that featured David Becker of the Center for Election Innovation and Research, Heidi Beirich of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism and Damon Hewitt of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.
One takeaway: We must take electoral threats seriously, but we must also refuse to be intimidated or discouraged from participating in our democracy. Becker offered context for Election Day coverage: “It is the day when demand for news is at its peak and supply of news is zero … So what are cable-news vans doing? They drive around town looking for the one polling place that has problems when most of them are doing pretty well. Understandable. But then we're all on edge.”
The potency of conspiracy theories increases dramatically when more and more people are feeling anxious, and that continues as we await the results. Malicious actors will use this process to feed into claims of stolen victories, but Becker clarified that the reality is far more mundane. “We're actually counting [ballots] as fast as ever,” he said. “It's that the margins are much narrower. And when the margins are narrower, it takes longer to know who won.”
The counting process is where Beirich sees great concern for election workers. “There [had] been talk already prior to the election about bringing the militias into areas along with the sheriffs where they're not happy with certification, counting and so on,” she explained. “So I am a little concerned post-election what these folks are going to do if their preferred candidate doesn't win, how riled up they'll be. I worry about the folks who are going to be counting our ballots.”
Hewitt spoke about extremist factions like the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers taking to the streets in either outcome — and discussed his organization’s work to combat these groups. “What we do know is that our effort and our litigation and multiple lawsuits against these types of hate groups … is to both delegitimize their ideology, but frankly, also to destabilize the organizations. And there's no one court victory that does all of that … They continue to sprout up,” he said.
During the final stretch of the 2024 election, we encourage you to prepare as much as possible for potential intimidation efforts and threats of violence that could jeopardize the democratic process. Watch our training and consult our Democracy Is … resource guides below:
- How Newsrooms Can Address Election-Related Disinformation
- Old & New Lies in 2024: How Newsrooms Can Build Trust & Debunk Election Lies for Voters
- How Communities Can Prepare for Protests in 2024
If you encounter any trouble at the polls, you can reach the Election Protection hotline at (866) OUR-VOTE.
Benavidez closed the conversation with optimism. “What I have heard overwhelmingly from all three of [our panelists] is that despite the fear mongering, the intimidation attempts and the structural attempts to undermine or remove the buttresses of our legal system, democracy remains durable,” she said. “That does not mean that we are immune from attack. It means that when attacked, the systems have integrity.”
