Wyoming governor requests investigation into activity of Justice Department monitors during primary

Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon has asked the state attorney general to investigate the conduct of two Justice Department attorneys who monitored the Aug. 18 primary in Laramie County, officials said. The monitors arrived after polls opened and sought to interview voters, question officials about poll-worker training, obtain training materials, and examine election tabulators, according to Laramie County Clerk Debra Lee. Lee said her office denied voter interviews and had not received advance notice, while a DOJ official later said the deployment was made on short notice and an email may have gone to the wrong address. Gordon described the behavior as “aggressive” and “irregular,” but said he was not alleging that the election outcome was affected. The DOJ said its Civil Rights Division was monitoring Wyoming to promote transparency, ballot security and compliance with federal voting-rights laws. The investigation will examine what occurred and whether federal monitors exceeded their authority.