Government imposters at your door?

By Peter Schorsch
Last Call
October 19, 2021

Over the past several weeks, people posing as government employees have been knocking on doors and asking voters questions, such as who they voted for last year.

The trend has emerged in Florida, too. In Seminole County, the Supervisor of Elections has received reports of right-wing groups using fake county badges as they approached voters in their homes. And in Pasco County, Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley confirmed that his office is not sending employees door-to-door.

Corley said last month that the spate of imposters is making a case for exempting voter information from the public record, a longtime goal of Florida Supervisors of Elections.

The Florida Democratic Party on Monday condemned the practice, noting that it is a third-degree felony to impersonate a government official. It also called on the Republican Party of Florida to denounce the tactic and for the state to launch an investigation into the people and groups behind it.

“Acts like this are a threat to our democracy and our electoral system. It shows that Republican-aligned groups will stop at nothing to undermine our democratic institutions and destroy the faith Floridians have in our elections,” FDP spokesman José Parra said.

“This type of action from the same groups that brought an insurrection to the U.S. Capitol as we were peacefully transferring power on Jan. 6 should not be surprising, but it is still shocking. We call for criminal investigations into these actions. If the Republican Party of Florida supports democracy, they should denounce this type of behavior coming from their supporters.”