Voter suppression takes many forms but one of the most pernicious examples of the ways some people try to prevent others from lawfully casting their ballots is through straight out voter intimidation. And nothing is more intimidating than a man threatening to shoot up a polling place.
That’s exactly what happened in Washington County, Pennsylvania where police arrested Christopher Queen after he said he would do exactly that after being told he couldn’t vote because he hadn’t registered.
Queen was incensed, claiming that he had been promised “a gun and money” if he voted “straight party,” according to WPXI News, and vowed to return with a gun to cause carnage if he wasn’t allowed to cast a ballot. He did not specify which party he was planning to vote for or who told him he would
Distraught poll workers summoned authorities immediately to arrest the man whom they subsequently charged with felony counts of terrorist threats.
BREAKING: Man arrested for threatening to shoot up a Washington County polling place. Witnesses told me an elderly poll worker was shaking uncontrollably after he left.
State police just caught the suspect, I’ll have more details shortly.
— Cara Sapida (@WPXICara) November 6, 2018
UPDATE: Man arrested for threatening to “shoot up” a Washington County polling place just charged with felony terroristic threats. Polling workers tell me he became angry when they told him he’s not registered to vote. Allegedly said he was going to return with a gun.
— Cara Sapida (@WPXICara) November 6, 2018
Normal voting resumed at the polling place after the arrest.
With political passions high and voter suppression efforts by Republicans in top gear, tensions at polling places are extraordinarily elevated today, particularly in places like South Carolina and Georgia where problems with voting equipment in some districts have led to long lines.
The important thing is to not let anyone or anything prevent you from participating in this election. Wait in line if you have to, but cast your ballot. And if you see any attempts at voter intimidation make sure you report them to the local authorities as soon as possible.
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Original reporting by J.D. Gallop, Lamaur Stancil, and Britt Kennerly at Florida Today.
