The U.S. Department of Justice sent election monitors to three Ohio counties on Tuesday, Nov. 3, as part of what the agency 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 press release. In Ohio, the agency assigned observers to Cuyahoga, Franklin and Medina counties.

Delaware County is not on the list. Powell and Liberty Township voters cast ballots outside the DOJ's monitored jurisdictions.

The effort is coordinated by the DOJ's Civil Rights Division. Monitors include personnel from multiple DOJ divisions, U.S. Attorney's offices and federal observers from the Office of Personnel Management, the agency said. They are checking for compliance with federal voting rights statutes, including the Voting Rights Act and the Help America Vote Act.

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Civil Rights Division said in the DOJ statement that the deployment pursues transparency for elections "in an assertive and nondiscriminatory manner."

The DOJ has sent election monitors since the enactment of the Voting Rights Act in 1965, but the scale of this deployment is new. The agency sent more than double the number of observers it deployed for the 2022 midterm election, NBC4 reported.

State officials, experts react

Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose said Oct. 27 that federal election observers are nothing new and have been deployed under both Republican and Democratic administrations. He said the monitoring effort could create doubt among voters but that his office shares accurate information about how Ohio elections work, NBC4 reported.

Steven Huefner, an Ohio State University professor, told NBC4 he worries the monitors' role could differ from past deployments and could be used to challenge election outcomes. He added that observers are not allowed to interact with voters.

Some voting rights groups, including the NAACP, said they believe the deployment could suppress turnout, particularly among minority voters, USA Today reported. In states with closely contested Senate races, monitors were assigned to cities and counties with disproportionately high levels of Black and Hispanic residents, according to U.S. Census data cited by USA Today.

Ohio's monitored counties reflect a mix. Cuyahoga County is 30% Black and Franklin County is 25% Black, while Medina County is 90% white, USA Today reported.

What voters should know

The DOJ said voters with questions or complaints about federal voting rights can call 1-800-253-3931 or email [email protected]. Complaints about disruptions at a polling place should be reported to local election officials. Threats or violence should be reported to local police by calling 911.