Election officials in Minnesota learned of a private security firm’s plan to deploy ex-U.S. military special ops personnel to polling places only because a Washington Post reporter reached out to ask the officials about it.
Anthony Caudle, the chairman and co-founder of security firm Atlas Aegis told the Washington Post that he was recruiting the private security forces on behalf of a consortium of businesses and “concerned citizens” that Caudle refused to name.
Caudle said they were being hired to make sure that the “Antifas don’t try to destroy the election sites,” while insisting to the Post that voters would not be intimidated by the sight of former military personnel at the their polling places.
Minneapolis’ top election official Casey Carl disagreed, and told the Post the private security forces were not authorized to be at polling places.
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It is against state law for anyone besides voters, election officials, and those certified to serve as “challengers” to be within 100 feet of a Minneapolis polling place, according to the Post. The Post also pointed to voter intimidation laws that the private security force may be in violation of, depending on its activities.