The Justice Department blasted Virginia Democratic Attorney General Jay Jones’ Election Day guidance as “bluster and political posturing,” pushing back against his 10-page directive advising local election officials to call police when federal agents approach polling places and to document their activities.
The Oct. 15 bulletin, jointly issued by Jones’ office and the Virginia Department of Elections, outlines how officials should respond to federal agents, scrutinize requests from DOJ election monitors and prepare for potential federal demands for ballots and voting equipment.
The dispute comes as conservative litigation firm America First Legal pursues records concerning the state’s warnings about potential federal election interference, which Fox News Digital has learned.
“The Virginia Attorney General’s performative actions attack a strawman,” a DOJ spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “DOJ’s election monitors will be engaging in the same routine monitoring we’ve done for decades.”
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“We’re hopeful local election officials in Virginia continue their longstanding practice of allowing DOJ election monitors into polling places to evaluate for compliance with federal law,” the spokesperson continued. “The Virginia AG’s statement reads as nothing more than bluster and political posturing for his own self-interested purposes.”
DOJ has already announced it plans to send election monitors to Democratic-heavy Fairfax and Prince William Counties.
Del. Wren Williams, R-Stuart, an attorney who battled Jones over Democrats’ failed redistricting-related litigation, said Jones has his election-security priorities backward.
“Jay Jones wants poll workers collecting ICE agents’ badge numbers, but God forbid they verify a voter’s ID,” Williams said. “Plus, I thought Democrats said illegals weren’t voting, so who exactly is Jones trying to protect?”
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Virginia still requires voters to present identification or sign an identity confirmation statement, although legislation enacted this year eliminated Election Day challenges to individual voters’ qualifications at polling places.
The blueprint noted that ELECT — the Virginia elections agency — received multiple inquiries about how to respond to federal representatives showing up at polls.
It instructed election officials to consult with lawyers and establish communications with local prosecutors and police:
“Having these discussions prior to Election Day ensures that election officials can provide their perspective to local law enforcement about what counts as intimidation and interference during elections, including issues related to the presence of unauthorized individuals.”
“If, for example, an armed individual attempts to gain access to a polling location, officials should call local law enforcement immediately,” it added in a section addressing unauthorized individuals and prohibited conduct.
The bulletin separately advises officials to consider contacting police and counsel if federal agents approach or enter polls, while cautioning against physically obstructing them.
Virginia State Sen. Danny Diggs, R-Poquoson — the former sheriff of York County — told Fox News Digital that in his 45 years in law enforcement he never saw an officer or official observer “make a polling place less safe.”
“I routinely visited every polling place, inside and outside, while armed and in uniform and was always welcomed by election officials and voters. The Attorney General apparently thinks otherwise,” Diggs said. He also called it “reckless” for the attorney general’s game plan to urge election officials to confront federal observers.
On Page 4, the plan says ordinary DOJ monitors must obtain local authorization to enter polling locations, under rules similar to those for neutral observers.
If a DOJ monitor requests access, the plan prescribes that local registrars discuss the scope of the monitoring with the agency before consenting, and “consider asking whether DOJ is assessing compliance with civil or criminal federal laws.”
The bulletin also advises election officials to consult attorneys and prepare to respond to federal subpoenas seeking ballots or voting equipment.
Fox News Digital reached out to Jones and ELECT for comment and a response to critics.
Jones, however, spoke out days earlier after launching a related new Voter Protection Section within his office.
“I was raised by people who understood that the right to vote was never simply given. Generations of Americans had to sacrifice, organize, and show extraordinary courage to claim that right,” Jones said in a statement obtained by Fox News Digital. “That history is personal to me, and it reminds us that the work of civil rights and voting rights is never finished.
“That is why we created a dedicated Voter Protection Section within the Office of the Attorney General. This work now has a permanent home, and a team focused every day on defending voting rights and enforcing Virginia law. Virginia votes every year, and protecting the franchise must be a year-round responsibility. In Virginia, the right to vote will be defended.”
Virginia Beach attorney Tim Anderson also analyzed Jones’ gameplan, calling it a “remarkable directive to election officials.”
“While all this is happening, Virginia has eliminated the ability to challenge a voter’s qualifications at the polling place,” Anderson said.
“Think about what we’re witnessing: The attorney general is preparing election officials to scrutinize federal law enforcement while Virginia has eliminated a longstanding Election Day safeguard for questioning voter eligibility,” he said in a statement. “The bulletin identifies no specific planned unlawful federal operation in Virginia.”
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America First Legal (AFL) exclusively told Fox News Digital on Tuesday it filed a public-records request Monday seeking legal analyses and communications behind the bulletin, records concerning Jones’ newly launched Voter Protection Section and inquiries about federal election monitoring.
The dispute now turns on what evidence, if any, prompted Jones’ office to prepare for potential federal interference at Virginia polling places, and whether the records sought by America First Legal will shed light on the attorney general’s concerns ahead of Election Day.