Kentucky election officials say federal monitors must stay 100 feet from polls in Louisville and Lexington

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Oct. 28) — The U.S. Justice Department plans to send civil election monitors to Jefferson and Fayette counties, home to Louisville and Lexington, on Election Day, Nov. 3. Kentucky election officials say the monitors will not be allowed inside polling places.

A letter from the department's Civil Rights Division, reviewed by the Kentucky Lantern, said the monitors would "only observe and take notes" and would not interfere with voting. Local officials said the department told them the monitors would look at accessibility for voters with disabilities, language assistance and how provisional ballots are handled. A DOJ spokesperson told the Lantern and Spectrum News 1 that about 1,000 monitors will be working in counties across all 50 states.

Jefferson County Clerk David Yates said state law spells out who may be inside a polling location while voting is underway, and federal monitors are not on that list. Like anyone else who is not voting, they must stay at least 100 feet from the entrance, he said. The Kentucky State Board of Elections and Fayette County officials took the same position, Kentucky Public Radio and Spectrum News 1 reported.

Yates said roughly a dozen monitors are expected in Louisville. He described them as DOJ employees, not federal law enforcement, and said voters do not have to talk to them. If monitors cross the 100-foot line and keep trying to enter, his office may call local police, he told Kentucky Public Radio.

Louisville's mayoral candidates split on the news, WDRB reported. Mayor Craig Greenberg said there is "no reason to be scared," while challenger Shameka Parrish-Wright said she was concerned about the department's presence and wanted clear answers about its role.

According to the DOJ, the monitors will be in Kentucky only on Election Day, not during early voting, Spectrum News 1 reported. No-excuse in-person early voting in Kentucky runs Thursday through Saturday.