One of the largest voting jurisdictions in the country — Maricopa County, Arizona — is also one of the most evenly divided and closely contested.
Since the state's swing to President Joe Biden in 2020, disinformation about the voting process here has led to all kinds of threats and harassment against the people who administer elections. Demonstrations at the election center in downtown Phoenix attracted armed protestors and became unruly at times.
As a result, Maricopa County spent millions of dollars to make some significant changes to security measures at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center.
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Scripps News got rare access to see these security updates, which include temporary fencing surrounding a permanent fence that has been erected since 2020, concrete barriers to prevent a car from barreling into the facility, and several security cameras monitoring the site and loading dock where ballots are delivered for processing and tabulation.
Maricopa County Sheriff Russ Skinner said in addition to these measures, the department will deploy drones and possibly add sniper lookouts on Election Day.
"Drones absolutely will be in the mix, especially at the tabulation center," said Skinner. "As far as snipers go, all my staff is on call. They've been given blackout dates to make sure that we have enough first responder personnel to assist with this situation. Do I have snipers on standby? Absolutely. Will they be there? Not necessarily. And that may be a game-time decision."
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When asked if he ever thought his job would include securing elections, Skinner said no.
"I never foresaw this in public safety, and it, quite frankly, it's concerning," Skinner said. "But on the other side, I hope we get to a point where it doesn't have to be like this, that we can celebrate what we're exercising here. And that is our right to vote."
Skinner told Scripps News that he has seen "minimal" threats to election officials and election workers in the lead-up to the election in Arizona but that he is preparing for a possible uptick in those threats post-Election Day.
