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Energy grid data center plans draw pushback in West Virginia; Small businesses brace for changes in 'One Big Beautiful Bill' and Pending SCOTUS arguments reignite thorny issue of campaign spending.

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Senate Republicans pass megabill after overnight wrangling. Trump calls for deportations of U.S. citizens who've committed crimes, despite the unpopularity of current ICE actions, and Supreme Court may lift some campaign cash limits.

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Freedom of speech and the press are being weakened, says a member of the FCC, an innovative green hydrogen plant is being built in a tiny New Mexico town, and Texas could soon see even more rural hospitals close.

NH lags behind other states in restricting firearms at polling sites

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Wednesday, April 24, 2024   

Concerns about potential voter intimidation have spurred several states to consider banning firearms at polling sites but so far, New Hampshire is not among them.

Only a dozen states and Washington, D.C., prohibit both open and concealed-carry weapons at voting locations.

Emma Brown, executive director of the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, said most of the bans were enacted after the 2020 election, when unfounded claims of widespread voter fraud took hold.

"The risk of gun violence at the polls is heightened," Brown contended. "Which means that legislation at the state level is even more critical than it ever has been."

Brown argued America's elections are free and fair, and prohibiting guns at polling sites and government locations is constitutional. Opponents countered the bans unfairly disarm law-abiding gun owners.

Recent surveys reveal election workers have faced increased threats and harassment since the 2020 election with one in three reporting some form of abuse. And nearly half of election workers said they are concerned for their colleagues' safety.

Brown pointed out armed intimidation tactics disproportionately target people of color and add to the growing exodus of election workers.

"This is a threat that we can't ignore," Brown stressed. "These attacks have also served as a deterrent to Black and brown election workers, who've historically been a really key part of ensuring that our democracy endures on Election Day."

As state legislatures consider banning guns at voting sites, legislation in Congress known as the "Vote Without Fear Act" would place a nationwide ban on weapons within 100 feet of a federal election facility, with exceptions for on-duty law enforcement and security personnel. It has been languishing in a House committee for a year.

Support for this reporting was provided by The Carnegie Corporation of New York.


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