Federal election monitors are stationed at polling locations in Hillsborough County on Tuesday, Nov. 3, as part of the largest monitoring effort in U.S. Department of Justice history.

The DOJ is deploying approximately 1,000 monitors and observers to all 50 states for the first time, according to a department press release. Hillsborough is one of five Florida counties on the monitoring list, alongside Leon, Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach.

The effort is a significant expansion. In the 2024 presidential election, the DOJ monitored 86 jurisdictions across 27 states, Axios reported.

What monitors will do

The monitors are checking compliance with federal voting rights laws, including the Voting Rights Act, the National Voter Registration Act and the Help America Vote Act, according to the DOJ. The department's Disability Rights Section is also enforcing the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) at polling places. A criminal section enforces statutes prohibiting voter intimidation and suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.

The Civil Rights Division is coordinating the deployment. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon said in a statement that the department is pursuing transparency for elections in what she called an assertive and nondiscriminatory manner.

Concerns from voting-rights groups

The deployment has drawn pushback. USA Today reported that voting-rights groups and local election officials raised concerns the monitors could intimidate voters. The NAACP said it believes the deployment could suppress turnout and disenfranchise voters, particularly from minority communities, according to USA Today.

USA Today also reported that in states with competitive Senate races, the monitors were assigned to cities and counties with disproportionately high levels of Black and Hispanic residents, according to U.S. Census data.

Hillsborough County on Election Day

Hillsborough County has 232 polling sites open Tuesday, with more than 2,000 trained poll workers, according to Tampa Bay 28. Over 40% of the county's registered voters had already cast ballots before Election Day, Tampa Bay 28 reported.

Craig Latimer, Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections, said voters must go to their designated precinct location on Election Day. "On election day, your ballot's already printed and it's waiting for you at your polling site. That's why you must vote in the polling site attached to your precinct on election day," Latimer told Tampa Bay 28.

A photo ID with a signature, such as a passport or driver's license, is required to vote.

Voters with questions or complaints about federal voting rights can call the DOJ's election hotline at 1-800-253-3931 or email [email protected].