Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Israeli raids targeted a cement plant, an asphalt factory, and fuel tanks in the Ansar area in South Lebanon
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: A series of violent Israeli raids targeted the outskirts of the town of Ansar
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Israeli warplanes raided the outskirts of the town of Shmestar in Bekaa, eastern Lebanon
Donald Trump will speak with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Thursday: White House
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in South Lebanon: Israeli warplanes raid the town of Bnaafoul, Saida district
YAF: Israeli enemy will pay for this crime.
Yemeni Armed Forces: Son of Major General Al-Ghamari martyred alongside him in Israeli aggression.
Yemeni Armed Forces: YAF mourns martyrdom of Chief of the General Staff Mohammad Abd al-Karim al-Ghamari.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Palestinian shot and killed by IOF east of Al-Bureij camp in the central Gaza Strip
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in South Lebanon: Occupation forces opened machine gun fire toward outskirts of Aitaroun as locals headed for olive harvest.

N. Carolina election chief threatened by Republican leader

  • By Al Mayadeen Net
  • Source: Reuters
  • 24 Apr 2022 14:43
4 Min Read

A local Republican Party official in North Carolina demanded access to voting equipment, claiming a 'chip' in voting machines used to steal the election from Donald Trump.

  • x
  • Local election chief threatened by Republican leader: Reuters
    Local election chief threatened by Republican leader: Reuters

The state elections board reported that a local Republican Party leader in North Carolina threatened to terminate or reduce the pay of a county elections director unless she helped him acquire unauthorized access to voting equipment.

William Keith Senter, a party official, sought information to bolster fake conspiracy theories saying that the 2020 election was rigged against former US President Donald Trump. The previously undisclosed incident is part of a nationwide campaign by Trump supporters to examine voting systems to back the illegitimate stolen-election accusations.

Senter, the chair of the Surry County Republican Party, informed elections director Michella Huff that if she refused his demand for access to the county's vote tabulators, she would lose her job, the North Carolina State Board of Elections said in written responses to Reuters inquiry. According to witness testimonies, Senter was "aggressive, threatening, and confrontational" in two encounters with Huff, according to the state elections board.

 Senter did not respond to requests for comment.

Intimidation, threats

The act of political intimidation bothered Huff, who rebuffed Senter's requests. Since the 2020 election, such threats have become prevalent around the country. In a series of investigative pieces, Reuters identified over 900 threatening or antagonistic texts addressed at election authorities.

"It’s a shame, that it is being normalized," Huff told Reuters. "I didn’t expect to get it here in our county. We are just trying to do our job by the law."

Senter's requests may be illegal under state law. Mark Payne, an attorney retained by the Surry County Board of Elections, indicated last week in a legal brief responding to community calls for a "forensic audit" of voting machines that giving unauthorized individuals access to voting machines was illegal. Anyone who threatens or intimidates an election official faces felony charges under state law.

Related News

John Bolton indicted for mishandling classified documents

Venezuela asks UN to declare US strikes illegal, cites civilian deaths

Senter and Douglas Frank, a prominent pro-Trump election conspiracist, met with Huff on March 28, claiming "there was a 'chip' in the voting machines that pinged a cellular phone tower on Nov. 3, 2020, and somehow influenced election results," according to the state election board, which called the claim "fabricated disinformation." Separately, Senter threatened to have Huff's pay lowered at a public event that Huff did not attend, according to Huff, who said a participant at the meeting notified her about the threat.

Two days before meeting with Huff, Frank gave a speech in Dobson, a town in the rural county of 72,000 people on the northern border with Virginia, where he spoke about "debunked conspiracy theories about the 2020 election," the board said. The day after the meeting, Frank, an Ohio math teacher, thanked his "patriot" hosts in a post to the messaging app Telegram about his trip to North Carolina and said he was "leaving behind a bonfire burning in good hands.”

Frank did not respond to requests for comment.

Senator, to face Huff? 

It's unclear how Senter intended to react against Huff. He claimed to have the support of Surry County commissioners, all of whom are Republicans, to pursue legal action against her. However, neither Senter nor the commission has any official authority over her position, which is held by the state electoral board. The state board is made up of three Democrats and two Republicans.

Huff, a former Republican, is now registered, independent.

Bill Goins, chairman of the county commission, declined to comment on Senter's attempts but affirmed that the panel could not terminate Huff.

The state board of elections spokesman, Patrick Gannon, said in a statement that the board reported the threats against Huff to state, federal, and local law enforcement and that the board would continue to report "any attempts to interfere with state or federal elections or harass or intimidate election officials."

No one has been charged in the incident.

On Saturday, neither the North Carolina Department of Public Safety nor the Federal Bureau of Investigation responded to calls for comment.

Dobson Police Chief Shawn Myers said he was not aware of the threats to Huff and did not believe his department had responded. Sheriff Steve Hiatt did not respond to requests for comment.

  • Donald Trump
  • Republican Party
  • North Carolina
  • United States

Most Read

Iran strikes secret Israeli-US bunker under Tel Aviv high-rise

Tel Aviv high-rise struck by Iran hid Site 81, secret US-Israeli base

  • Politics
  • 14 Oct 2025
Palestinian journalist Saleh al-Jaafarawi in an undated image in Gaza, occupied Palestine (Social media)

Gaza Palestinian journalist Saleh al-Jafarawi killed by collaborators

  • Politics
  • 12 Oct 2025
drop site

New report details extensive Israeli arson in Gaza after ceasefire

  • Politics
  • 13 Oct 2025
Illustration of fists breaking shackles, representing the liberation of Palestinian detainees from Israeli prisons. (Illustrated by: AL Mayadeen English/Batoul Chamas)

4 prominent Palestinian detainees to be freed: Who are they?

  • Palestine
  • 13 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
The bodies of deceased Palestinians, held by Israel during the war, lie in plastic bags on the floor of Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, Gaza, following their release, Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025 (AP)
Politics

'Israel' returns 30 Palestinian bodies; some bear marks of torture

Gaza buried under 70 million tons of war debris as crisis deepens
Politics

Gaza buried under 70 million tons of debris, 20,000 lingering UXOs

Ex-White House adviser Ashley Tellis charged over secret files
Politics

Ex-White House advisor accused of amassing troves of top secret files

An Israeli soldier rests by a mobile artillery unit at a gathering point on the border with the Gaza Strip, in southern “Israel”, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025. (AP)
Politics

Global arms bans isolate 'Israel', yet its war machine keeps running

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS