'We're a Fortress Now': The Militarization of US Elections Is Here

Drones, snipers, razor wire, sniffer dogs, assemblage armor, bulletproof glass, and 24-hour equipped security.

This is not a database of protections successful spot for a sojourn by the president of the United States nor the contents of a shipment to frontline troops warring successful Ukraine. This is simply a database of the information measures predetermination officials successful counties crossed the US person had to instrumentality up of Tuesday’s ballot arsenic a effect of the unprecedented threats they person faced successful caller years.

Officials are putting successful spot the emblematic last measures to guarantee the creaseless cognition of an election, but beyond checking that they person capable ballots and that machines are moving properly, officials are present faced with having to show for threats and marque definite they person done everything they tin to support themselves and their staff.

“Given the existent governmental environment, the anticipation that an lawsuit whitethorn hap has accrued and our predetermination professionals person responded successful kind,” says Tammy Patrick, a erstwhile predetermination authoritative successful Arizona’s Maricopa County who’s present a elder advisor astatine the nonprofit Bolstering Elections Initiative. “Efforts focusing connected the carnal information of the voters, predetermination workers, and unit by putting successful bulletproof glass, panic buttons, razor ligament and fencing are reasonably common, arsenic is the installation of surveillance cameras and systems, cyber protections, and grooming connected de-escalation techniques and effect drills.”

Nowhere successful the US is the militarization of the predetermination process much evident than successful Maricopa County.

The county, which is the 4th largest region successful the nation, became crushed zero for predetermination denial conspiracists successful caller years, aft GOP lawmakers sanctioned a bogus recount successful 2021, tally by the Florida institution Cyber Ninjas.

As a result, Maricopa has for years been putting accrued information measures successful place. “We're a fortress now,” Stephen Richer, the Maricopa County Recorder, told WIRED backmost successful February, outlining however helium had to navigate information fencing, metallic detectors, and information checks successful bid to get into his office.

As the 2024 predetermination approaches, the measures Maricopa officials are putting successful spot person been ratcheted up significantly.

Officials person present added a 2nd furniture of information fencing to support predetermination offices arsenic good arsenic concrete k-rails, which means predetermination workers volition beryllium bussed successful from off-site locations owed to reduced parking spaces. At the country’s tabulation center, each doorway volition beryllium fitted with metallic detectors, floodlights volition beryllium installed, and connected predetermination day, the halfway volition beryllium protected by a ringing of snipers deployed connected roofs astir the building, predetermination officials told NBC.