Justice Department to Monitor Early Voting in Florida

The Justice Department announced today that it will monitor portions of the early voting period for the Nov. 6, 2012, general election in Miami-Dade County, Fla., to ensure compliance with the Voting Rights Act of 1965.  The Voting Rights Act prohibits discrimination in the election process on the basis of race, color or membership in a minority language group.

Justice Department personnel will monitor polling place activities during early voting in this county.  Civil Rights Division attorneys will coordinate federal activities and maintain contact with local election officials.

Each year, the Justice Department deploys hundreds of federal observers from the Office of Personnel Management, as well as departmental staff, to monitor elections across the country.  To file complaints about discriminatory voting practices, including acts of harassment or intimidation, voters may call the Voting Section of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division at 1-800-253-3931. The Justice Department previously announced that it would be monitoring early voting for the general election in Dallas and Harris Counties in Texas.

Visit www.justice.gov/crt/voting/index.php for more information about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws.