Kentucky law on "Poll Watching"

By: Clifton Rogers 

The Republican Party and Donald Trump have made repeated calls to the general public to “watch the polls” to prevent election mischief. Kentucky law allows for each political party to have representatives at the polls to act as “challengers.” They are there to ensure voting integrity; however, they must be certified by the Board of Elections and their activities are limited.

KRS 117.316 lays out what a challenger may do. A challenger can verify that voters are correctly registered, in the correct precinct, properly identified, and not a convicted felon lacking voting rights. The Trump Campaign and Republican Party can take some solace in those provisions given their oft-stated concerns over individuals voting multiple times. The power of challengers are not unlimited and KRS 117.317 lays out what challengers may NOT do. It states that a challenger shall not:

            (1) Electioneer or campaign on behalf of any candidate, issue, or political party;

            (2) Handle official election materials except as provided in KRS 117.187;

            (3) Attempt to intimidate or harass, verbally or otherwise, any voter who is being challenged or any precinct election officer;

            (4) Behave in any manner to disrupt activities at the polling place; or

            (5) Attempt to interfere with the proper conduct of the election.

These prohibitions are consistent with the general ban on electioneering or campaigning at polling places. In Kentucky electioneering is prohibited by anyone, including the general public, within 100 feet of a polling place. These prohibitions exist to prevent voter intimidation, last-minute campaigning, and hassling of voters.

 In addition to being prohibited from campaigning near a polling site, the general public is prohibited from being in the voting room except to vote. KRS Section 117.235 states that no person other than a voter, a person assisting a voter, a minor child, a challenger, or a person certified to enforce the law may be in the voting room while voting is taking place. 

A reasonable election official could likely interpret an uncertified, random individual who attempts to “check the polls” to be attempting to campaign or to intimidate voters.  They can also cause general disruption and confusion. If a member of the general public attempted to be in a voting room to watch the process or to stand near a polling site for that purpose they would be asked to leave. If they persisted then they would be subject to prosecution.  KRS Section 117.995 provides the penalties for the violation of these sections. It states that any person who violates these laws after being notified of them is subject to a Class A Misdemeanor for the first offense and a Class D Felony for subsequent offenses.

In sum, Kentucky law has provisions in place to ward off voter intimidation. Under the law, election officials inside the polls, and not the general public, are the best defense for warding off anything that may occur.