State and Federal Officials are both sharpening their tools ahead of next week’s General Election. California Attorney General Rob Bonta has joined 13 other states to demand an explanation from Meta as to why the “No Kings Coalition” Instagram account was suspended on October 17th just when the group was actively urging voters to turn in their ballots early. Meta claims it was due to a sharp increase in what appeared to be bot activity.
Bonta praised the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court’s refusal to back a Trump Administration request that state elections officials segregate and not count 20,000 ballots it believes may have been cast by non-citizens. Monday’s decision sets the Federal Government and state officials up for another legal showdown Tuesday before a Federal District Judge.
Meanwhile the U.S. Justice Department has taken the unprecedented step of assigning a “District Election Officer” from each U.S. Attorney’s Office to handle complaints about voting rights and election fraud. Federal authorities have no jurisdiction over elections, with the Constitution giving that responsibility to states.
-Steve Gibson