Representatives from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) told Yellowhammer over the weekend that they will indeed be sending foreign nationals to observe elections in Alabama on Tuesday. “We will be watching everything and everyone,” one of the reps, a native of Spain, said on the phone Friday evening.
The OSCE, a United Nations affiliate, came under fire recently after it was announced they would be deploying a team of poll watchers to polling sites across the country at the urging of numerous liberal-leaning organizations including the ACLU and NAACP.
Alabama House Speaker Mike Hubbard made national news two weeks ago after he told Yellowhammer he would push for a law blocking foreign observers from future elections in Alabama by allowing only those who are U.S. citizens to be certified as poll watchers in the state. “If you can’t participate in an election in the United States, and if you can’t cast a vote in the United States, you really have no business serving as a poll watcher in an election being held in the United States,” Hubbard said.
Other states quickly followed Hubbard’s lead.
Texas Secretary of State Gregg Abbott sent a letter to Ambassador Daan Everts of the OSCE in which he stated: “The OSCE’s representatives are not authorized by Texas law to enter a polling place. It may be a criminal offense for OSCE’s representatives to maintain a presence within 100 feet of a polling place‘s entrance. Failure to comply with these requirements could subject the OSCE’s representatives to criminal prosecution.”
Then this past week, Iowa Secretary of Statt Matt Shultz issued a statement saying that election officials have the authority to arrest any unauthorized persons at Iowa polling places — including OSCE officials. “Iowa law is very specific about who is permitted at polling places, and there is no exception for members of this group,” Shultz wrote.
Although the OSCE is not officially under the United Nations’ umbrella, the OSCE notes on their website that “the United Nations is the OSCE’s primary partner organization.”
Yellowhammer spoke on Friday with two OSCE reps, one from Spain and another from Scotland, who have been deployed to Alabama. “I can only talk in general terms about what we will be doing,” one of the reps said. “We are invited guests of the government of the United States. We’ve been observing elections in many countries, including emerging democracies.”
After pointing out that the United States is hardly an “emerging democracy,” I was referred to the OSCE’s Washington, D.C. press office for further information. “We are not at liberty to discuss details of our operations,” the second rep said. “I would only like to say that we will be strictly abiding by the electoral code of Alabama. The Secretary of State told us we are not allowed inside any polling places.”
When I asked pointedly if they would be looking specifically for voter suppression activities by conservative groups, as was reported by D.C. publication The Hill, one OSCE rep said, “We will be watching everything and everyone and will issue a statement with our findings on November 7th.”
[UPDATE: Secretary of State Beth Chapman released the following statement regarding OSCE poll watchers. “The visitors will definitely not be allowed inside polling locations on Election Day and will have absolutely no direct involvement with the voting process. They may believe that they are going to be watching ‘everything and everyone’ on Tuesday, but the truth of the matter is, they will be watching what they can from at least 30 feet behind the doors of a polling place. Anyone who sees otherwise should call our office immediately.”]
[UPDATE: Here’s a list of where all the OSCE poll watchers will be deployed]
