Election officials are still feeling the stress

Election officials across the country have been feeling more stress and scrutiny after the 2020 presidential election — so much so that many of them have decided to leave office. The New York Times recently reported that in southwestern Ohio about one in four election directors or deputy directors have left.

“People are losing sleep,” Auglaize County Board of Elections Director Michelle Wilcox said. “The pressure is coming from political parties and (believers in) conspiracy theories.”

While Republicans have been complaining about voter fraud, Democrats have their own theories about voter suppression.

“It’s the same,” she said. “One says one to the extreme and one says another to the extreme. If you are not supportive of one candidate saying this election is fraudulent, or whatever they say, basically then your political careers are over.”

Wilcox tells the story of an election administrator that recently left after 14 years on the job. Michelle Carew was an official in Hood County, Texas who resigned after months of right wing pressure. Former Scott County, Iowa election official Roxanna Moritz also quit her post amid increased pressure and scrutiny from the Iowa legislature. Recent Iowa laws could label some errors like failure to get approval for extra pay as a felony.

“These are friends of mine, they are the presidents of their associations, they are certified,” Wilcox said.

Brad Rathlesberger, the secretary of state from Georgia, had a phone call from former president Donald Trump asking that 12,000 votes be found in the 2020 election. Wilcox expects a far right challenger in the next primary for that office.

“We will see what happens,” Wilcox said.

Voter fraud concerns haven’t been proven despite many claims of impropriety. Wilcox said less than 20 cases — out of 6 million votes cast — of suspected fraud were taken to the U.S. Attorney General; she said some of those

won’t even be prosecuted.

For those who think there is election fraud Wilcox would encourage them to become poll workers or get involved in their local election to learn about the process.

“Gone are the days where somebody says ‘Do these ballots have bamboo in them?’ We can’t laugh it off anymore. We have to have a script to educate the voters,” Wilcox said.

She said the board of elections has a working relationship with the Auglaize County Sheriff’s Office and deputies are present on election night.