August 17, 2024

Preparing for the election: Resources for local police

PERF members,

Local police have an important role to play in the upcoming election in November. Our system of government depends on the legitimacy of the election process. After the 2020 election, we saw that legitimacy questioned, most notably during the violent insurrection attempt at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, an event that led to numerous police officer injuries and deaths. We have every reason to expect that this will again be a very contentious election season, and we’ve already seen an assassination attempt on one of the presidential candidates and attempts by a foreign government to hack both major party campaigns.

Marine One lifts off from the South Lawn of the White House, Friday, April 5, 2024. Source: Official White House Photo by Carlos Fyfe

With close elections expected in many states, agencies across the country need to be prepared for a wide range of scenarios. We’re likely to see poll workers threatened and the spread of misinformation and disinformation. And as we saw in the aftermath of both the January 6^th attack and attempted assassination of former president Trump, local and federal agencies both have important roles to play in responding to larger-scale incidents.

With that in mind, I’d like to pass along a few resources you may find useful as you plan for the November election. With less than three months until Election Day, all agencies should be developing plans for events leading up to, during, and following the election.

I recommend you start with the “Election Hub” from Georgetown Law’s Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection (ICAP). ICAP is led by Mary McCord, who previously served as the acting assistant attorney general for national security at the U.S. Department of Justice and has had a close working relationship with PERF over the years. As its website explains, “ICAP has produced numerous legal guidance documents, fact sheets, and short video explainers that are designed to help election officials, civic leaders, voters, and law enforcement prepare for and protect against political violence while safeguarding constitutional rights. These materials address a variety of issues that are likely to come up in the election and post-election context, including voter intimidation, unlawful paramilitary activity, and threats and harassment against government officials.”

ICAP resources that local police executives may find useful include:

• Empowering Democracy: What Police Need to Know at the Polls
• Law Enforcement Guidance for Policing Public Demonstrations
• Prohibiting Private Armies at Public Rallies: A Catalog of Relevant State Constitutional and Statutory Provisions

The Washington Monument and Jefferson Memorial as seen from inside the White House

I also recommend you check out Addressing the Threat of Political Violence in the 2024 Elections: A Practical Guide for State and Local Government. Edited by Brian Michael Jenkins, a senior adviser to the president of the RAND Corporation, this report summarizes a workshop held this spring with experts from law enforcement, national security, and the legal profession. Participants included former Washington, D.C., Police Chief and current NFL Chief of Security Cathy Lanier, former Los Angeles County Sheriff Jim McDonnell, former NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence David Cohen, former LAPD Assistant Chief Horace Frank, former TSA Administrator John Pistole, and former National Counterterrorism Center Director Michael Leiter

“As older Americans, [participants] had gone through earlier bouts of domestic political turmoil and generally had confidence in the resilience of American society and its institutions — faith that American common sense would prevail,” Jenkins writes in the foreword. “But they also worried the country’s deep divisions and dark mood could propel even minor incidents of violence during the election cycle into a dangerous national crisis. Awareness and preparedness are the antidotes. The political campaigns have begun, but practical steps are possible. That is the principal message of this report.”

The full report is available for free electronically, and a printed version is available at cost ($4.75) on Amazon.

And I encourage you to watch this recent video from the COPS Office on preparing for the election season. It features interviews with Green Bay, WI Chief Chris Davis and retired Maricopa County, AZ Sheriff Paul Penzone on lessons they’ve learned from previous elections.

Finally, I’d like to echo these resources in encouraging you to look out for the safety of your local election workers. As the New York Times reported this week, “In just the past year, [election officials] have been flooded with inane demands for details about their employees, faced harassment campaigns targeted at their female family members, received intimidating letters laced with fentanyl and been subjected to fake threats of bombings and break-ins.” These officials are working an often-thankless job that is vital to our democracy, so please meet with them regularly in the lead-up to the election to discuss their safety needs and reassure them that you’re there to protect them.

Best,

Chuck