Remarks of United States Attorney Todd Gee Regarding the Department of Justice’s Efforts in 2024 to Protect the Vote and Secure Elections

Thank you, Assistant Special Agent in Charge Dimachkie.

It has been a long-standing priority of the Department of Justice to ensure that all qualified voters have the opportunity to cast their ballots and have their votes counted free of discrimination, intimidation, or criminal activity in the election process.  The Department is also committed to ensuring that our elections are secure and free from foreign malign interference.

In order to achieve these goals, we want to share some information with the public about steps the Department is taking to protect the right to vote and prevent federal election crimes in Mississippi and throughout the nation during this year’s federal elections in November.  These measures are consistent with longstanding Justice Department practices and policies.

The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, in partnership with U.S. Attorney’s Offices, is responsible for ensuring compliance with the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, and with federal criminal laws that prohibit discriminatory interference with that right.  Throughout the election cycle, attorneys with the Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi will be available to receive and review complaints of potential violations of these laws.

Individuals with complaints related to possible violations of federal voting laws can call the Justice Department’s hotline at 1-800-253-3931, and can also submit complaints through the Department’s website at www.civilrights.justice.gov/.

Additionally, as part of the Justice Department’s efforts to secure the election, each U.S. Attorney’s office – including the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi – has partnered with the local FBI field office to respond to reports of federal election crimes, such as alleged destruction of ballots, vote-buying, multiple voting, submission of fraudulent ballots or registrations, and alteration of votes. 

The FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s offices are also responsible for enforcing federal criminal law prohibiting unlawful threats to election workers. As part of these efforts, each U.S. Attorney’s Office has designated an Assistant U.S. Attorney, who is a career public servant, to serve as the District Election Officer responsible for overseeing potential election-crime matters in their districts, and for coordinating with the Department’s election-crime experts at the Public Integrity Section in Washington, D.C.  

The FBI has also designated a specially trained agent in each field office as an Election Crime Coordinator who will be on duty while polls are open to receive complaints from the public. The FBI’s Election Crime Coordinator and the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s District Election Officer will also work closely with the Office of the Mississippi Secretary of State and other state and local officials regarding alleged election crimes.

Members of the public in Mississippi can report election-crime complaints to the Jackson FBI Field office at 1-800-CALL-FBI, or online at https://tips.fbi.gov/.

The Department of Justice has also launched a website with information about its efforts to secure elections and the right to vote at www.justice.gov/voting.

Protecting the right to vote, prosecuting election crimes, and securing our elections in Mississippi and throughout the nation are essential to maintaining the confidence of all Americans in our democratic system of government.  The Justice Department encourages anyone with information regarding concerns in these subject areas to contact the appropriate authorities.

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