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    • Georgia election officials respond to security concerns with panic buttons
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    Georgia election officials respond to security concerns with panic buttons

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    A Texas election worker was punched in the face. Ballot boxes were set on fire in Washington and Oregon, sending hundreds of votes up in smoke. A teenager from Florida brandishing a machete on people waiting in line to vote.

    Violence is seizing the elections. And it’s not even November 5th yet.

    In the past, the administrative routine of Election Day would not have been alarming. But things are different this time. Officials have spent most of 2024 preparing for this moment.

    A few months before Election Day, Tate Fall approached the Georgia Board of Elections with an urgent request: provide panic buttons and armed security for its poll workers.

    Fall is the elections director for Cobb County, Georgia, one of the most densely populated areas in the state. She worries about the safety of her election staff — mostly older volunteers and retired staff — as tensions around the 2024 race intensify.

    The enhanced security measures are “basically for their peace of mind,” Fall tells USA TODAY. Yet, she says, “it’s what keeps me up at night.” »

    The Georgia Board of Elections approved more than $2.4 million to boost security. Protections include additional sheriffs at polling locations, a full-time security guard for the Cobb County Election Office and radios for all poll workers. These are the same radios used by the police and are equipped with a panic button.

    In Chatham County along the Georgia coast, officials confirmed they also developed a security plan with the local election board and police department.

    “Chatham County also coordinates with police departments in each municipality in the county to be present at polling locations within their jurisdiction,” said Will Peebles, Chatham County Deputy Public Information Director.

    It may seem extreme, but protections such as panic buttons, bulletproof glass and increased police presence are becoming more common in voting booths across the country.

    Panic at the polls

    Runbeck Election Services has been in the elections business for over 50 years. Before 2024, the company provided ballot printers, mail sorters and other equipment to polling places.

    But this year, thanks to a partnership with Response Technologies, Runbeck is selling a new device: the Staff panic buttons for election officials.

    This wearable piece of technology is the size of a standard security badge and can be worn around a lanyard or clipped into a pocket. It is equipped with a button that connects via Bluetooth. If a worker feels threatened, they can press the button and the device alerts the appropriate authorities, such as local police, a director of elections or a polling station official.

    The company has sold about 1,000 panic buttons so far this election season.

    Runbeck CEO Jeff Ellington told USA TODAY he was surprised by the number of requests from election officials across the country. The Swing States have expressed particular interest in the device.

    “These are also the second-tier swing states,” says Ellington. “These are states that everyone thought were either in Republican hands or Democratic hands. And now you are shuffling the cards in favor of the Democrats, which is overturning some of the polls.”

    He notes that places like North Carolina — one of the “second-tier” swing states now up for grabs with Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee — have inquired about getting the panic buttons.

    “Election officials, even outside of swing states, have been tormented and threatened, because no one really knows how this is going to play out,” Ellington says.

    Having access to devices such as panic buttons has become a grim necessity, not only for election workers, but also for county and state officials, Ellington noted.

    “It’s heartbreaking to see what the officials have to endure as well. Because it’s usually their local constituents who make these threats,” he said, his voice cracking with emotion. “These are people they were in the PTA with, or their kids played sports together. And now, all of a sudden, people think they’re corrupt in some way.

    Police train for Election Day

    For enhanced security measures, like panic buttons, to work, local police need to “know the rules of the game,” says election security expert Chris Harvey.

    As the director of elections for the Georgia Secretary of State’s office during the 2020 election campaign, Harvey fully understands the impact of violent speech and threats. election worker safety.

    He combined this experience with his experience as a former police officer to develop the first state-mandated system. electoral training for law enforcement. The training teaches Georgia officers the basics of the state’s election laws and illegal activities at polling places, such as bringing in a gun and racketeering.

    Harvey believes training is essential this year, as Georgia went from a reliably red state to a blue state in the 2020 election. Tensions have since escalated.

    “Georgia is a very purple state in political terms,” Harvey says. “So there’s going to be a lot of attention, a lot of press and a lot of energy in Georgia.”

    All of this could lead to increased risks of violence at polling places as voters and officials find themselves in the spotlight for the 2024 elections.

    “We want to make sure that if an officer responds to a call, they know the election laws,” says Harvey. “Whether they’re going to a polling place, an election office or an audit, they need to have that basic understanding. If things get volatile, don’t you want the men and women who are reacting to know what the rules of the game are?

    Despite talk of threats on Election Day, Fall and his Cobb County election officials are confident things will go smoothly.

    “Everyone seems really excited. And my employees really appreciate the security improvements,” says Fall. “Overall, I think the tone is hopeful and positive.”

    Melissa Cruz is an elections reporter focusing on voter access issues for the USA TODAY Network. You can reach her at [email protected] or on X, formerly Twitter, at @MelissaWrites22.

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