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Free Legal and Communications Help Available for Election Officials and Poll Workers

In the aftermath of the 2020 election and the leadup to 2024, election officials have seen an unprecedented amount of harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence, simply for doing their jobs of administration fair elections. This alarming escalation of harassment not only jeopardizes the safety and well-being of these officials and their families, but also undermines the very essence of democracy.

As a result, The Center for Election Innovation & Research (CEIR) offers the Election Official Legal Defense Network (EOLDN). EOLDN connects election officials in need of qualified pro bono attorneys who can provide advice or assistance, regardless of political affiliation.

EOLDN also connects an elections office to communications professionals, free of charge. This service helps election officials address issues related to elections or election administration on behalf of their county office or agency. Communications support could include ongoing communication strategy support during an election; message development, for example, a response to misinformation or an attack on election integrity; or rapid response and media relations.

EOLDN’s services are available regardless of political affiliation. As a public charity exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, CEIR may not participate or intervene in any political campaign on behalf of, or in opposition to, candidates for public office.

For more information or to request help:
Visit: eoldn.org
Email: help@eoldn.org
Call: (877) 313-5210

“They’re citizens. They’re professionals. They’re our neighbors. If we start to view our fellow citizens as our enemies, we’re lost.”
— David Becker (Republican push to recruit election deniers as poll workers causes alarm | June 30, 2022 – The Guardian)
“Election officials never get praised if elections go right and the wrath comes down on them if they do them wrong. When we saw election officials being prosecuted for just doing their jobs... we formed [EOLDN] and we do provide pro bono legal services to any election officials who need it.”
— Ben Ginsberg (Trump’s pressure on Pence more ‘unprecedented’ than ‘what we saw in Watergate’ | June 17, 2022 – MSNBC)
“Those who are threatening … these officials, whether they're full-time, whether they're volunteers, whether they're in positions of the most senior responsibility or they're simply on the staff — those who threaten them need to know they cannot act with impunity. There will be a defense and it will be a robust defense."
— Bob Bauer (Helping election officials who are threatened | March 14, 2022 – 60 Minutes Overtime, CBS News)
"What we are seeing developing now is a huge step backwards from a focus on professionalized election administration to a heavy level of political interference in the work of trained election professionals. Our hope now is to provide [election officials] with a resource I wish they didn't have to have, but one I think they have desperately needed."
— Bob Bauer (Election Workers Are Under Attack. A Group Of Lawyers Plans To Defend Them | September 8, 2021 – National Public Radio)
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