(CN) — The Trump campaign and Nevada Republican Party sued election officials in Nevada’s most populous county Friday, demanding ballot counting stop there immediately until Trump campaign observers are allowed to witness the vote tallying process.
“Transparency is paramount to ensure Nevadans the right to a free and fair election,” Nevada Republican Party Chair Michael J. McDonald said in a statement Friday. “Clark County’s refusal to allow people to observe the handling of ballots and their low standards for matching signatures should disturb all voters.”
The lawsuit, filed in Nevada’s First Judicial District Court in Carson City, is one of dozens of lawsuits filed across the country by President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign and Republicans seeking to limit mail-in voting and ensure Trump campaign observers can object to mail-in ballots during the counting process.
The lawsuit was filed against Nevada Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske, a Republican, and Joseph Gloria, registrar of voters for Clark County, the most populous and diverse county in Nevada, which includes Las Vegas.
Fred Kraus, a registered Clark County voter and volunteer poll watcher, is lead plaintiff in the lawsuit. Kraus reportedly worked as a vice president and general counsel at the Venetian casino and resort owned by GOP mega donor and Trump supporter Sheldon Adelson, according to the Nevada Independent.
The lawsuit complains that Gloria failed to submit a written plan for members of the public to view the delivery, counting, handling and processing of ballots at polling places by April 15, as required by state election laws.
According to the complaint, observers in Clark County are often positioned more than 25 feet away from the vote tallying process, which prevents them from seeing calls that are made when authenticating ballots. Observers must also be accompanied by “ambassadors” at all times, but “there are not enough ambassadors to allow consistent and meaningful observation of the entire process,” the Trump campaign gripes.
“Without meaningful observation, there cannot be any assurances of transparency,” Nevada Republicans say in their 13-page complaint.
Ballot counting has already started in Nevada, where vote tallying of mail-in ballots can start 15 days before Election Day.
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