Election integrity seems to be on everyone’s mind this election cycle, not least because the shenanigans in places like Atlanta and Philadelphia are still being argued over. But, as much as some parties would love to have us believe that every election (that a Democrat wins) is the most secure election imaginable, sometimes some evidence rises up and smacks them in the face.
In Montana, Democrat Senator Jon Tester is fighting for his political life against Republican challenger Tim Sheehy – and he’s apparently losing. On Wednesday, we learned that a Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) employee, one Laszlo Gendler, has been fired for seemingly attempting to tamper with a ballot drop box.
The main campaign committee for Senate Democrats has fired an employee who was accused of “tampering” with a ballot box in Montana, a must-win state for the party to keep its majority in the upper chamber.
The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) canned Laszlo Gendler after he was recorded walking up to a ballot box in Glacier County Sunday, shaking it briefly and then leaving the scene, according to an alarming video obtained by Fox News.
In the video, a young man, later identified by the office of Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen as Gendler, approaches the box and tries to move it slightly with both hands before giving up and taking out his cell phone. He then seemingly takes a picture or video of the location.
Some would be quick to note here that Gendler did not break into or even attempt to break into the ballot box unless one sounds trying to “move it slightly with both hands” as trying to break into the box. In all fairness, that seems a bit of a stretch. But he did tamper with it even so – and we’re left wondering what possible reason Gendler would have for photographing the box unless it was to interfere with it at a later time, perhaps under the cover of darkness.
Fortunately, he was caught and fired, and we should give the DSCC credit for that much.
“Poll observers are instructed not to touch ballot boxes. This individual was attempting to ensure a new ballot box was secured to the wall, neither the ballot box nor ballots were affected,” said DSCC spokesman David Bergstein in a statement to Fox. “Their actions were not in accordance with our procedures and out of an abundance of caution they will no longer be doing this work moving forward.”
The DSCC paid Gendler $42,909.20 in salary and travel expenses between Sept. 15, 2023, and Aug. 30, 2024, per Federal Election Commission filings.
As of this writing, it’s unclear as to whether Gendler will face any legal consequences.
See Related: With the Senate on the Line, It’s All Over but the Crying for Jon Tester in Montana
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Of course, there’s a catch; Gendler’s dismissal by the DSCC doesn’t preclude his making another attempt, perhaps a more serious one. The Montana Senate race is generally regarded as key to determining the control of the Senate for the next cycle, and while the race doesn’t appear to be all that close – at the moment, Tim Sheehy is ahead of incumbent Jon Tester by seven points in the RealClearPolitics average – there is still, and indeed always, the chance that someone may try something like this. What’s more, this ballot box is in Montana’s House District 1, where incumbent Republican Ryan Zinke is facing a challenge from Democrat Monica Tranel in a race ranked as “leaning Republican.”
In other words, it’s an area that might be seen as vulnerable to a swing of a few hundred votes – say, the contents of a ballot box.
