JUSTICE DEPARTMENT TO MONITOR ELECTIONS IN CALIFORNIA

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Justice Department today announced that, as part of its ongoing efforts to protect the rights of language minority citizens and to ensure compliance with the Help America Vote Act, it will send Civil Rights Division personnel to seven counties in California to monitor the March 2 primary election. Personnel will be stationed in Imperial, Kings, Los Angeles, San Benito, San Diego, San Francisco and San Joaquin Counties, and will monitor activities in other nearby counties as well.

Each of the counties has obligations to provide voting materials in one or more minority languages pursuant to Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act, and personnel will gather information concerning compliance. This also will be the first California election in which the requirements of the Help America Vote Act are required to be implemented, and Division staff will collect information about compliance with these provisions.

Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act requires that in jurisdictions with a sufficiently large number of citizens who have limited English proficiency, voting materials must be provided in languages other than English. Twenty-five of California's counties meet those criteria with respect to one or more language minority groups. Under the Act, language minority group refers to persons who are American Indian, Asian American, Alaskan Native, or of Spanish heritage.

Attorneys from the Civil Rights Division will coordinate the federal activities and maintain contact with local election officials.

To file complaints about discriminatory voting practices, including acts of harassment or intimidation, voters may call the Voting Section of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division at 1-800-253-3931.

More information about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws is available on the Department of Justice website at <http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/voting/index.htm>.

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