Augusta - Federal and state officials and the attorney for the Maine Civil Liberties Union will be available to deal with election fraud claims.

It's part of the Justice Department's nationwide Election Day Program.

According to a press release from United State Attorney, Thomas Delahanty II, "the program is designed to handle complaints in the District of Maine of election fraud and voting rights abuses in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington and the State of Maine Attorney General's Office."

Attorneys will have immediate access to both federal and state court judges during the times that the polls are open to assist in the enforcement of voting rights if necessary.

United States Attorney Delahanty said, " Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination and to have that vote counted without it being stolen because of fraud. The Department of Justice will act promptly and aggressively to protect the integrity of the election process."

As stated in the press release, federal law protects against such crimes as intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes,altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input. It also contains special protections for the rights of voters and provides that they can vote free from acts that intimidate or harass them.

If you have a complaint on November 6th, here are the numbers you can call:

AUSA McCarthy: (207) 262-4646

AUSA Osborn: (207) 771 - 3277

Maine FBI field office: (207) 774-9322

Attorney Heiden of the MCLU : (207) 774-5444

Complaints about ballot access problems or discrimination can also be made directly to the Civil Rights Division's Voting Section in Washington at 1-800-253-3931.

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