Summary State Laws Providing Protection for Election Officials and Staff

California

CA SB 1131 (2022)

“A county elections official shall, upon application of a qualified worker, make confidential that worker's residence address, telephone number and email address appearing on the affidavit of registration, in accordance with the terms and conditions of this section.”

"Qualified worker" means a person who is employed by or contracts with the secretary of state or a local election office who performs election-related work and interacts with the public or is observed by the public doing election-related work, but does not include a person who is a precinct board member who does not otherwise perform election-related work. For the purposes of this section, a qualified worker is not limited to those who exclusively perform direct election-related work for the secretary of state or local election offices.”

CA ELEC § 2166.5

Colorado

CO HB 1273 (2022)

“(1) At any election provided by law, it is unlawful for any person to interfere in any manner with any election official in the discharge of the election official's duty or to induce any election official to violate or refuse to comply with the election official's duty or any law regulating the same.(2) It is unlawful for any person, whether verbally, in writing, or in person, to threaten, coerce, or intimidate an election official with the intent to: (a) Impede or interfere with the official while the official is engaged in the performance of the official's duties; or (b) Retaliate against the official on account of the official's performance of the official's duties.”

CO ST § 1-13-701

Maine

ME HB 1354 (2022)

ME HP 1354 (2022)

“The registrar or clerk shall attend a training session that is approved by the secretary of state at least once every two years in regard to the conduct of voter registration. The training must include, but is not limited to, training on the de-escalation of conflicts and the process for reporting threats to or harassment of public officials related to the conduct of federal, state or municipal elections to the Secretary of State.”

“Intentionally interferes by force, violence or intimidation or by any physical act 17 with any public official who is in fact performing or the person believes is performing 18 an official function relating to a federal, state or municipal election”

ME ST T. 21-A § 101

ME ST T. 21-A § 505

ME ST T. 21-A § 674

Michigan

MI HB 4129 (2023) 

"(1) An individual who intimidates an election official because of the election official’s status as an election official, with the specific intent of interfering with the performance of that election official’s election-related duties, is guilty of a crime as provided under subsection (3). (2) An individual who prevents an election official from performing the election official’s duties in conducting an election is guilty of a crime as provided under subsection (3). (3) An individual who violates subsection (1) or (2) is guilty of a crime as follows: (a) For a first offense, the individual is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 93 days or a fine of not more than $500.00, or both. (b) For a second offense, the individual is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 1 year or a fine of not more than $1,000.00, or both. (c) For a third or subsequent offense, the individual is guilty of a felony." - Statute: MI ST 168.931b 4. 

Minnesota

MN HB 3 (2023)

"Subd. 2. Intimidation. (a) A person may not directly or indirectly use or threaten force, coercion, violence, restraint, damage, harm, or loss, including loss of employment or economic reprisal, against another with the intent to influence an election official in the performance of a duty of election administration.(b) In a civil action brought to prevent and restrain violations of this subdivision or to require the payment of civil penalties, the plaintiff may show that the action or attempted action would cause a reasonable person to feel intimidated. The plaintiff does not need to show that the defendant intended to cause the victim to feel intimidated.

Subd. 3. Interfering with or hindering the administration of an election. A person may not intentionally hinder, interfere with, or prevent an election official's performance of a duty related to election administration.

Subd. 4. Dissemination of personal information about an election official. (a) A person may not knowingly and without consent make publicly available, including but not limited to through the Internet, personal information about an election official or an election official's family or household member if:(1) the dissemination poses an imminent and serious threat to the official's safety or the safety of an official's family or household member; and
(2) the person making the information publicly available knows or reasonably should know of any imminent and serious threat.
(b) As used in this subdivision, “personal information” means the home address of the election official or a member of an election official's family, directions to that home, or photographs of that home.

Subd. 5. Obstructing access. A person may not intentionally and physically obstruct an election official's access to or egress from a polling place, meeting of a canvassing board, place where ballots and elections equipment are located or stored, or any other place where the election official performs a duty related to election administration."

"Subd. 11. Criminal penalties; civil remedies. (a) Except as otherwise provided, a person who violates this section is guilty of a gross misdemeanor."

MN ST § 211B.076

Nevada

NV SB 406 (2023)

“It is unlawful for any person to use or threaten or attempt to use any force, intimidation, coercion, violence, restraint or undue influence with the intent to:

(a) Interfere with the performance of the duties of any elections official relating to an election; or

(b) Retaliate against any elections official for performing duties relating to an election.”

Effective Oct 1, 2023

New Hampshire

NH SB 405 (2022)

“I. No person shall use or threaten force, violence, or any tactic of coercion or intimidation to knowingly discourage, interfere with, or compel any election officer, as defined in RSA 652:14, and other appointed individuals assisting at the polling place, such as ballot clerks and greeters, from engaging in or completing duties related to an election.

II. Whoever violates the provisions of this section or who conspires to violate the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a class B felony.”

NH ST § 659:40-b

New Mexico

NM SB 43 (2023)

“Intimidation consists of inducing or attempting to induce fear in the secretary of state, a county clerk, a municipal clerk or any employee or agent of the secretary of state, employee or agent of a county clerk, employee or agent of a municipal clerk, member of an election board, voter, challenger or watcher by use of or threatened use of force, violence, infliction of damage, harm or loss, or any form of economic retaliation upon the secretary of state, a county clerk, a municipal clerk or any employee or agent of the secretary of state, employee or agent of a county clerk, employee or agent of a municipal clerk, member of an election board, voter, challenger or watcher for the purpose of impeding or preventing the free exercise of the elective franchise or the impartial administration of the election or Election Code. Whoever commits intimidation is guilty of a fourth-degree felony.”

NM ST § 1-20-14

Oklahoma

OK SB 481 (2023)

“Any person who, directly or indirectly, utters or addresses any threat or intimidation to any election official with intent to improperly influence an election shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed $1,000 or by imprisonment in the county jail for a term not to exceed six months, or by both such fine and imprisonment.”

OK ST T. 26 § 16-109

Oregon

OR HB 4144 (2022)

“(1) Any elector may request the county clerk to keep the residence address of the elector exempt from disclosure as a public record under ORS 192.311 to 192.478.

(b) The elector has been identified as an election worker by the secretary of state, county clerk or other public body as defined in ORS 174.109 in a manner prescribed by the secretary by rule.”

OR ST § 247.965

Vermont

VT SB 265 (2022)

“(f) A person who violates subsection (a) of this section with the intent to terrify, intimidate, or unlawfully influence the conduct of a candidate for public office, a public servant, an election official, or a public employee in any decision, opinion, recommendation, vote, or other exercise of discretion taken in capacity as a candidate for public office, a public servant, an election official, or a public employee, or with the intent to retaliate against a candidate for public office, a public servant, an election official, or a public employee for any previous action taken in capacity as a candidate for public office, a public servant, an election official, or a public employee, shall be imprisoned not more than two years or fined not more than $2,000, or both.”

VT ST T. 13 § 1702

Washington

WA SB 5628 (2022)

“(1) A person is guilty of cyber harassment if the person, with intent to harass or intimidate any other person, and under circumstances not constituting telephone harassment, makes an electronic communication to that person or a third party and the communication.”

“(iii) The person cyber harasses a criminal justice participant or election official who is performing the participant's official duties or election official's official duties at the time the communication is made.

(iv) The person cyber harasses a criminal justice participant or election official because of an action taken or decision made by the criminal justice participant or election official during the performance of the participant's official duties or election official's official duties”

“(3) Any criminal justice participant or election official who is a target for threats or harassment prohibited under subsection (2)(b)(iii) or (iv) of this section, and any family members residing with the participant or election official, shall be eligible for the address confidentiality program created under RCW 40.24.030.”

WA ST 9A.90.120