DuPage County voters heading to the polls Tuesday, Nov. 3, will not encounter federal election monitors, but they will find local prosecutors and investigators watching for problems.

The U.S. Department of Justice announced it is deploying approximately 1,000 election monitors and observers to all 50 states, the first time the effort has covered every state, according to a DOJ statement. The department called it the largest monitoring effort in DOJ history. The DOJ has sent election monitors since the enactment of the Voting Rights Act in 1965.

In Illinois, the DOJ listed six jurisdictions for monitoring: Chicago, Cook County, Champaign, Sangamon, St. Clair and Madison counties. DuPage County was not on the list.

DuPage County's own teams

DuPage County State's Attorney Bob Berlin announced his office is deploying teams of assistant state's attorneys and investigators to polling places from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Nov. 3, according to the Villa Park Review. The teams will respond to suspected violations of the Illinois Election Code.

Berlin's staff will stay in contact with officials at the DuPage County Clerk's Office in Wheaton throughout the day and evening.

Berlin said in a statement that local law enforcement and sheriff's deputies will also be available. He said his office does not anticipate problems but is prepared to investigate allegations of voter fraud or interference.

Illinois AG sets boundaries

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul issued a statement ahead of Election Day saying DOJ poll monitors cannot interfere with election administration, Patch reported. Raoul said the monitors must present credentials when entering polling places and follow the instructions of election judges.

Raoul said in his statement that monitors "cannot inspect, touch or seize ballots or voting equipment, decide which votes are counted, or interfere with election administration in any way." He added that federal monitors can only interact with voters with the voter's consent.

Raoul said he has been in contact with the DOJ and had no reason to believe monitors would act inconsistently with traditional monitoring efforts.

Concerns and context

The federal effort is coordinated by the DOJ's Civil Rights Division. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon said in the DOJ statement that election integrity has been a top priority for the administration. She said the department is pursuing transparency for elections "in an assertive and nondiscriminatory manner."

The deployment has drawn concern. USA Today reported that in several states with competitive Senate races, including Texas, Michigan and Georgia, many of the monitored jurisdictions had disproportionately high levels of Black and Hispanic residents, according to U.S. Census data. Groups including the NAACP said they believe the monitors could suppress turnout, particularly among minority voters.

A coalition of voting rights organizations, including the League of Women Voters of Illinois and Common Cause Illinois, trained hundreds of attorneys and volunteers as poll monitors and watchers ahead of Nov. 3, Shaw Local reported. Those volunteers will be stationed in and around polling places to spot and report suspected voter intimidation or election interference.

DuPage County voters with questions about activities at polling places can call the DuPage County Clerk at 630-407-5600 or the State's Attorney's Election Hotline at 630-407-8118.