Poll Watcher Raises Alarm
“Are you going to watch the election?” Maria asked. She was cleaning up the evening dishes. “I want to see who won before I go to work.”
“Is that tonight?” The television was playing some telenovela that Maria liked to watch. Juan had been scrolling on his cell phone, ignoring it.
“Ay, guau!” Maria’s expression of surprise was meant to tease. “All this talk about your first election, and you don’t even know what day it is?”
Juan laughed and aimed the remote at the TV, changing the channel to Univision.
It was fascinating to watch… for a while. The Univision studio had been transformed into an “Election Headquarters” complete with large screens and maps displaying the incoming election results. The anchors talked incessantly about exit polls and early results, but as the hours passed, they could only conclude that the race was still too close to call.
“I’ve got to go.” Maria placed some leftovers in her lunchpail. “If they get done before you go to bed, text me and let me know who won, OK?”
Juan promised, kissed her, and walked her to the door. Before returning to his chair, he went to the refrigerator and got a Coors Light.
Juan was intrigued by the expert analysis offered by pollsters and representatives from both parties. As the night wore on, they started calling the states in the Eastern time zone. Indiana and Kentucky both came in for Trump, followed by Vermont with a resounding win for Biden.
A little while later, an extremely tight race in Virginia was called for Trump. The anchors were going wild speculating on the significance of that development. They announced that South Carolina was being called for Trump when breaking news interrupted the broadcast.
“Good evening, I’m Juan Rodriguez, and this is Breaking News Tonight on Univision. Our top story: allegations of election fraud in Maricopa County, Arizona, have surfaced, causing a stir on social media.”
What’s this? Juan thought. Arizona’s in the news?
The broadcaster continued with dramatic urgency, “A poll watcher, Sarah O’Neill, claims to have witnessed irregularities at a voting center during the recent election. According to an Instagram post, she reported discrepancies in ballot counts, citing an extra 200 ballots and drop boxes allegedly containing sealed ballots before they were placed.”
“Madre de Dios!” Juan shouted at the TV. “Not again!”
There was a rapid back-and-forth exchange in Spanish so fast that Juan could barely follow it. “Here’s Brad Pascal from the Maricopa County Sheriff with an official statement.”
A tired, angry-looking man with thinning hair stood behind a podium in a tan uniform as reporters snapped pictures and shouted questions. He waited until the uproar died, then read from a script.
“Thank you for joining me today," Pascal began. "Over the past several hours, we’ve been investigating reports of illegal activities surrounding ballot drop boxes within Maricopa County. Our dedicated election fraud task force has worked tirelessly to identify and apprehend those responsible for compromising the integrity of our electoral system.”
There were more shouts from the reporters. Pascal ignored them, “As of 2100 hours tonight, two individuals have been taken into custody in connection with the illicit activities surrounding ballot drop boxes. The individuals in custody will face charges related to tampering with election materials, a serious offense that threatens the very foundation of our democratic principles.”
Pascal did not elaborate on which party was responsible for the tampering. He explained that more information would be forthcoming. “I want to reassure the residents of Maricopa County that we are taking immediate and comprehensive measures to prevent any recurrence of such incidents. Our partnership with the Maricopa County Elections Department is strong, and additional security measures have been implemented to fortify the integrity of our electoral process.”
Maybe it was the extra beer, but Juan felt a little like he was cheering for a winning score at a ball game, “All right, that’s how to keep it clean! You’re gonna make Arizona the example for the rest of America!”