The U.S. Department of Justice sent election monitors to four Pennsylvania counties on Tuesday, Nov. 3, as part of what the department called its largest monitoring effort in history.

Approximately 1,000 monitors fanned out across all 50 states for the first time, according to a DOJ announcement. In Pennsylvania, the monitors went to Philadelphia, Allegheny, Luzerne and Lehigh counties. Monroe County, home to Stroudsburg and the broader Pocono region, was not on the list.

Luzerne County is the closest monitored jurisdiction to the Pocono area. Luzerne County Manager Romilda Crocamo said the DOJ has sent monitors there before, including during the 2022 and 2024 general elections and the 2024 primary, the Pennsylvania Capital-Star reported.

"We're not allowing monitors into the polling places, whether it's the ACLU or the DOJ," Crocamo said, according to the Capital-Star. "Our voters should know that their vote is safe, and the process is transparent and fair, and not to have any fears if they go to the polls."

The deployment marks a sharp increase. The DOJ sent 289 monitors during the 2022 midterms and 714 during the 2024 presidential election, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported, citing CBS News.

What monitors can and cannot do

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Civil Rights Division said in the DOJ statement that the effort would pursue "transparency for elections in an assertive and nondiscriminatory manner." The monitors are checking for compliance with federal voting rights laws, including the Voting Rights Act.

In a letter to Pennsylvania officials, DOJ attorney James T. Catania wrote that monitors would observe and take notes, would dress in business-casual clothing without DOJ insignia and would not carry firearms, the Inquirer reported.

Pennsylvania Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt said monitors have no special legal authority at polling places, according to Spotlight PA.

"DOJ monitors are not legally entitled to any greater access to polling places than any member of the public," Schmidt said. "We encourage them to coordinate with county election offices to ensure that their activities on Election Day do not disrupt the voting process in any way."

Deputy Secretary for Elections Jonathan Marks told county officials in an email that monitors "may not enter restricted areas, inspect voting equipment, or demand access to any records," the Inquirer reported.

Concerns from voting rights groups

The NAACP sued the federal government over the monitoring plan, alleging it could discourage turnout and disrupt voting, the Inquirer reported. The ACLU, its Pennsylvania chapter and the Public Interest Law Center wrote to election officials in all 67 Pennsylvania counties urging them to guard against interference, WVIA reported.

The civil rights groups' Oct. 20 letter warned that the expanded program "could be poorly trained, lack a legal background … or even be conspiracy theorists," according to WVIA.

In Lehigh County, Director of Elections Mike Paston said eight federal observers would work in pairs or trios across the county's 158 precincts, the Capital-Star reported.

"It's not the first time we've had monitors, probably won't be the last," Paston said. "There's no reason … to think their motives are anything but aboveboard and normal."

Polls in Pennsylvania were open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Voters with questions about federal voting rights laws can call the DOJ's election hotline at 1-800-253-3931.