theintercept--2020-07-15--Progressive Wave Rolls Through Texas with Big Wins in Dallas, Austin, and Houston

of progressive primary victories rolled into Texas on Tuesday evening , with Candace Valenzuela and Mike Siegel pulling into strong leads against centrist opponents for the chance to flip Republican-held suburban districts .
In the Travis County district attorney race , José Garza , an immigrant rights activist and former public defender backed by the Democratic Socialists of America , ousted incumbent Margaret Moore .
The national party ’ s pick for Senate , M.J. Hegar , meanwhile , found herself locked in a much closer fight than expected with Royce West , though by the end of the night @ @ @ @ @ @ @ election race against Republican Sen. John Cornyn .
With well more than half of the precincts reporting , Siegel was leading physician Pritesh Gandhi by 9 points , and declared victory around 10 p.m. , Texas time .
Valenzuela was up nearly 20 points over veteran Kim Olson , and also declared victory .
Computer engineer Donna Imam was leading Christine Mann , a physician who backed single payer health care , by almost 14 points in a race where the ideological lines were less clearly drawn .
Texas initially held its primary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to July due to the coronavirus .
Siegel was heavily outspent and attacked as too progressive to win the general election , giving his victory more resonance , and Valenzuela mounted a major comeback after trailing Olson by 11 points in the first round of voting .
Valenzuela had broad progressive backing , but was also the recipient of a major spending spree by the Congressional Hispanic Caucus , looking to show it can compete in the suburbs of the new Democratic Party .
If Siegel and Valenzuela hold on to their leads @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could have a major impact on the politics of the House Democratic caucus next session , with 2021 potentially turning into a landmark legislative year for the party .
They join Kara Eastman in Omaha , Nebraska , and Dana Balter in Syracuse , New York , as progressives who have won contested primaries in Republican-held districts this year .
That ’ s as many progressive wins against moderate opponents in GOP districts , many who were backed by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee , as there were in all of 2018 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fewer races to compete in ( since Democrats flipped that many seats in 2018 ) .
The four progressives who won their 2018 primaries were Eastman , Balter , and Katie Porter and Mike Levin in California .
Eastman and Balter lost their general election races ( but won their primaries again this year ) , making Porter and Levin the only two progressives who won competitive primaries and went on to win general elections in red districts .
That created a conventional wisdom in Washington that as Democrats become an increasingly suburban @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to hold those seats .
( And Levin ’ s win was difficult for progressives to capitalize on , because he beat , among other opponents , progressive Douglass Applegate , who had run a close race in 2016 . )
The type of districts where Valenzuela and Siegel competed have become a focal point for a Democratic Party that has been increasingly seizing suburban territory from Republicans .
Siegel , running in Texas ’ s 10th Congressional District , which stretches from suburban Austin to suburban Houston , now faces incumbent Rep. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ term in Congress .
Valenzuela , in the 24th District , which covers suburban areas outside Fort Worth and Dallas , will face Beth Van Duyne , the former mayor of Irving .
The seat is currently held by Rep. Kenny Marchant , a Republican first elected in 2004 , who narrowly fended off a Democratic challenger in 2018 .
Marchant ’ s 2019 retirement announcement was part of what became known as “ Texit , ” as longtime suburban GOP incumbents headed for the doors .
Texas ’ s suburbs are exploding @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which more than balances out the flow of conservatives leaving California for the Lone Star state .
That changing demography has made the Texas suburbs culturally indistinguishable from suburbs around the country , and that spells trouble for Republicans .
When Democrats took control of Congress last , in 2006 , they did so significantly by winning back rural districts that had been gradually becoming more Republican .
Despite the wave and Barack Obama ’ s 2008 win , those districts continued trending away , and Republicans took many of them back @ @ @ @ @ @ @ This time around is different , as the suburban districts picked up by Democrats in 2018 are trending toward the party , becoming more Democratic , meaning that more progressive candidates may be able to hold them .
If Siegel and Valenzuela maintain their leads and win their general elections , it means that a progressive message can not just win a primary in suburban New York or Chicago — as Mondaire Jones and Marie Newman showed , respectively — it can flip a red district , too .
That would put pressure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ suburban districts , many of whom have not yet established name recognition , and could be vulnerable to challenges .
That dynamic could push them leftward in their voting and messaging to fend off a challenge , a shift they ’ d be more comfortable making if they know it won ’ t fatally undermine their general election chances .
Porter , now a high-profile progressive , did not even draw a top-shelf Republican challenger .
The wins would be well-timed .
Simply winning a handful of House races each cycle is nowhere @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Congress fast enough to stave off cataclysmic climate change tipping points , to rescue the economy from a tailspin , or to address the unfolding health care crisis .
But if the window for big legislative maneuvering opens in 2021 , and House Democrats feel that their seats are in jeopardy if they don ’ t go big , the consensus within the party of what the most strategic move is could shift left .
rights attorney who supports a Green New Deal and Medicare for All , first ran in 2018 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ range , but surprised officials back in Washington by winning 47 percent of the vote .
That blood in the water drew new candidates , notably corporate attorney Shannon Hutcheson , who was backed by EMILY ’ s List and was clearly the establishment favorite , even though she did not have the official backing of the DCCC .
But a super PAC backing Gandhi , 314 Action , spent heavily pounding away at Hutcheson , and she failed to make the runoff .
The super PAC has continued to spend big — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ race — in the run-off .
The PAC presents itself as pro-science , but endorsed John Hickenlooper , a champion of fracking , in Colorado , and Gandhi has called the Green New Deal and Medicare for All “ fool ’ s gold.
” 314 ’ s main line of attack against Siegel is that his loss last cycle proves he is unable to win the general election .
Ironically , of course , it was his surprisingly narrow defeat that coaxed Gandhi and Hutcheson into the race .
The parallels with Levin @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as Applegate , like Siegel , helped make the district competitive the cycle prior , and 314 Action helped power Levin over Applegate .
Sen. Kamala Harris had endorsed Gandhi , while Siegel had the backing of Sens .
Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren .
Siegel ’ s outspoken civil rights record was a boon throughout June , as protests erupted after the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers .
In his victory speech Tuesday night , Siegel noted that the district is more than just a stretch of suburbs , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rural hospitals in the district over the past 10 years .
“ We are in a district where the legacy of Jim Crow racism hangs heavy , ” he said , noting the recent five-year anniversary of the death of Sandra Bland in the district .
The wave of protests also helped Valenzuela , who surged significantly following the March 3 primary .
Last week , a survey , which was commissioned by the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and conducted in July by Data for Progress , revealed a significant shift in the race @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leading Olson by an 11-point margin .
Early voting data from her campaign suggests that the surge was fueled by higher turnout among voters of color .
If elected , Valenzuela would be the first Afro-Latina in Congress .
And as someone who grew up homeless , at one point “ sleeping in a kiddie pool outside a gas station , ” Valenzuela would also be bringing this economic perspective to Congress , where many of the lawmakers are millionaires .
She noted in her victory speech that , thanks to a newborn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ majority of our campaign was run out of our master bathroom.
” Leading up to the March primary , Olson led the rest of the field in fundraising and as a retired Air Force colonel , fit the mold of the party ’ s preferred candidate .
But her record , specifically that Olson was charged with war profiteering in Iraq , had the potential to be too big of a political liability in the general election , so the House Democrats ’ campaign arm stayed out of the race .
EMILY ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ typically weigh in on races between two pro-choice women , backed Valenzuela .
Valenzuela also won endorsements from the Congressional Hispanic , Black , Asian , and Progressive Caucuses , and lawmakers like Warren and Rep. John Lewis , D-Ga..
In the most recent fundraising quarter , The Intercept reported last week , Valenzuela outraised Olson , $ 465,000 to $ 438,000 , with a smaller average campaign contribution .
Garza , executive director of the Workers Defense Project , ran on a progressive platform that focused on transforming the criminal justice system @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by Sanders , Warren , Julián and Joaquin Castro , the Austin DSA chapter , the Center for Popular Democracy Action , and the Working Families Party .
One of the major highlights of Garza ’ s platform was a vow to treat substance abuse as a public health crisis and end the prosecution of low-level drug offenses , which he defined as the sale and possession of a gram or less of narcotics .

The recent wave of progressive primary victories rolled into Texas on Tuesday evening, with Candace Valenzuela and Mike Siegel pulling into strong leads against centrist opponents for the chance to flip Republican-held suburban districts. In the Travis County district attorney race, José Garza, an immigrant rights activist and former public defender backed by the Democratic Socialists of America, ousted incumbent Margaret Moore. The Democratic national party’s pick for Senate, M.J. Hegar, meanwhile, found herself locked in a much closer fight than expected with Royce West, though by the end of the night, she appeared headed for a general election race against Republican Sen. John Cornyn.
With well more than half of the precincts reporting, Siegel was leading physician Pritesh Gandhi by 9 percentage points and declared victory around 10 p.m., Texas time. Valenzuela was up nearly 20 points over veteran Kim Olson, and also declared victory.
Computer engineer Donna Imam was leading Christine Mann, a physician who backed single-payer health care, by almost 14 percentage points in a race where the ideological lines were less clearly drawn.
Texas initially held its primary on Super Tuesday, with runoffs postponed to July due to the coronavirus. Siegel was heavily outspent and attacked as too progressive to win the general election, giving his victory more resonance, and Valenzuela mounted a major comeback after trailing Olson by 11 points in the first round of voting. Valenzuela had broad progressive backing but was also the recipient of a major spending spree by the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, looking to show it can compete in the suburbs of the new Democratic Party.
If Siegel and Valenzuela hold on to their leads, their fates in the general election could have a major impact on the politics of the House Democratic caucus next session, with 2021 potentially turning into a landmark legislative year for the party.
They join Kara Eastman in Omaha, Nebraska, and Dana Balter in Syracuse, New York, as progressives who have won contested primaries in Republican-held districts this year. That’s as many progressive wins against moderate opponents in GOP districts, many who were backed by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, as there were in all of 2018, even though this year there were 40 fewer races to compete in (since Democrats flipped that many seats in 2018).
The four progressives who won their 2018 primaries were Eastman, Balter, and Katie Porter and Mike Levin in California. Eastman and Balter lost their general election races (but won their primaries again this year), making Porter and Levin the only two progressives who won competitive primaries and went on to win general elections in red districts. That created a conventional wisdom in Washington that as Democrats become an increasingly suburban party, moderate candidates will be needed to hold those seats. (And Levin’s win was difficult for progressives to capitalize on, because he beat, among other opponents, progressive Douglass Applegate, who had run a close race in 2016.)
The type of districts where Valenzuela and Siegel competed have become a focal point for a Democratic Party that has been increasingly seizing suburban territory from Republicans.
The type of districts where Valenzuela and Siegel competed have become a focal point for a Democratic Party that has been increasingly seizing suburban territory from Republicans. Siegel, running in Texas’s 10th Congressional District, which stretches from suburban Austin to suburban Houston, now faces incumbent Rep. Mike McCaul, running for an eighth term in Congress. Valenzuela, in the 24th District, which covers suburban areas outside Fort Worth and Dallas, will face Beth Van Duyne, the former mayor of Irving. The seat is currently held by Rep. Kenny Marchant, a Republican first elected in 2004, who narrowly fended off a Democratic challenger in 2018.
Marchant’s 2019 retirement announcement was part of what became known as “Texit,” as longtime suburban GOP incumbents headed for the doors. Texas’s suburbs are exploding with out-of-state transplants, many voting Democratic, which more than balances out the flow of conservatives leaving California for the Lone Star state. That changing demography has made the Texas suburbs culturally indistinguishable from suburbs around the country, and that spells trouble for Republicans.
When Democrats took control of Congress last, in 2006, they did so significantly by winning back rural districts that had been gradually becoming more Republican. Despite the wave and Barack Obama’s 2008 win, those districts continued trending away, and Republicans took many of them back in the 2010 tea party wave. This time around is different, as the suburban districts picked up by Democrats in 2018 are trending toward the party, becoming more Democratic, meaning that more progressive candidates may be able to hold them.
If Siegel and Valenzuela maintain their leads and win their general elections, it means that a progressive message can not just win a primary in suburban New York or Chicago — as Mondaire Jones and Marie Newman showed, respectively — it can flip a red district too. That would put pressure from the left on Democratic incumbents in suburban districts, many of whom have not yet established name recognition, and could be vulnerable to challenges. That dynamic could push them leftward in their voting and messaging to fend off a challenge, a shift they’d be more comfortable making if they know it won’t fatally undermine their general election chances. Porter, now a high-profile progressive, did not even draw a top-shelf Republican challenger.
The wins would be well-timed. Simply winning a handful of House races each cycle is nowhere near enough to change the structure of Congress fast enough to stave off cataclysmic climate change tipping points, to rescue the economy from a tailspin, or to address the unfolding health care crisis. But if the window for big legislative maneuvering opens in 2021, and House Democrats feel that their seats are in jeopardy if they don’t go big, the consensus within the party of what the most strategic move is could shift left.
Siegel, a civil rights attorney who supports a Green New Deal and Medicare for All, first ran in 2018, when Democrats considered the district out of range, but surprised officials back in Washington by winning 47 percent of the vote. That blood in the water drew new candidates, notably corporate attorney Shannon Hutcheson, who was backed by EMILY’s List and was clearly the establishment favorite, even though she did not have the official backing of the DCCC.
But a super PAC backing Gandhi, 314 Action, spent heavily pounding away at Hutcheson, and she failed to make the runoff. The super PAC has continued to spend big — dropping close to $600,000 on the race — in the runoff. The PAC presents itself as pro-science, but endorsed John Hickenlooper, a champion of fracking, in Colorado, and Gandhi has called the Green New Deal and Medicare for All “fool’s gold.” 314’s main line of attack against Siegel is that his loss last cycle proves he is unable to win the general election. Ironically, of course, it was his surprisingly narrow defeat that coaxed Gandhi and Hutcheson into the race. The parallels with Levin’s 2018 race are notable, as Applegate, like Siegel, helped make the district competitive the cycle prior, and 314 Action helped power Levin over Applegate.
Sen. Kamala Harris had endorsed Gandhi, while Siegel had the backing of Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, as well as Sunrise Movement and the Texas AFL-CIO, an unusual combination. Sunrise made Siegel’s race a high priority, and his outspoken civil rights record was a boon throughout June, as protests erupted after the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers.
In his victory speech Tuesday night, Siegel noted that the district is more than just a stretch of suburbs, zeroing in on the closure of three rural hospitals in the district over the past 10 years. “We are in a district where the legacy of Jim Crow racism hangs heavy,” he said, noting the recent five-year anniversary of the death of Sandra Bland in the district.
The wave of protests also helped Valenzuela, who surged significantly following the March 3 primary. Last week, a survey, which was commissioned by the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and conducted in July by Data for Progress, revealed a significant shift in the race, showing that Valenzuela was climbing, leading Olson by an 11-point margin. Early voting data from her campaign suggests that the surge was fueled by higher turnout among voters of color. If elected, Valenzuela would be the first Afro-Latina in Congress. And as someone who grew up homeless, at one point “sleeping in a kiddie pool outside a gas station,” Valenzuela would also be bringing this economic perspective to Congress, where many of the lawmakers are millionaires. She noted in her victory speech that, thanks to a newborn and another young child, “the majority of our campaign was run out of our master bathroom.”
Leading up to the March primary, Olson led the rest of the field in fundraising and as a retired Air Force colonel, fit the mold of the party’s preferred candidate. But her record, specifically that Olson was charged with war profiteering in Iraq, had the potential to be too big of a political liability in the general election, so the House Democrats’ campaign arm stayed out of the race. EMILY’s List, which doesn’t typically weigh in on races between two pro-choice women, backed Valenzuela.
Valenzuela also won endorsements from the Congressional Hispanic, Black, Asian, and Progressive Caucuses, and lawmakers like Warren and Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga. In the most recent fundraising quarter, The Intercept reported last week, Valenzuela outraised Olson, $465,000 to $438,000, with a smaller average campaign contribution.
Garza, executive director of the Workers Defense Project, ran on a progressive platform that focused on transforming the criminal justice system to decriminalize poverty. He was endorsed by Sanders, Warren, Julián and Joaquin Castro, the Austin DSA chapter, the Center for Popular Democracy Action, and the Working Families Party. One of the major highlights of Garza’s platform was a vow to treat substance abuse as a public health crisis and end the prosecution of low-level drug offenses, which he defined as the sale and possession of a gram or less of narcotics.


theintercept--2020-07-15--Progressive Wave Rolls Through Texas With Big Wins in Dallas, Austin, and Houston


theintercept--2020-07-16--Homeland Security Worries Covid-19 Masks Are Breaking Facial Recognition, Leaked Document Shows

politicians still struggle to convince Americans to take the barest of precautions against Covid-19 by wearing a mask , the Department of Homeland Security has an opposite concern , according to an “ intelligence note ” found among the BlueLeaks trove of law enforcement documents : Masks are breaking police facial recognition .
The rapid global spread and persistent threat of the coronavirus has presented an obvious roadblock to facial recognition ’ s similar global expansion .
Suddenly everyone is covering their faces .
Even in ideal conditions , facial recognition technologies often struggle with accuracy and have a particularly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ identifying faces that aren ’ t white or male .
Some municipalities , startled by the civil liberties implications of inaccurate and opaque software in the hands of unaccountable and overly aggressive police , have begun banning facial recognition software outright .
But the global pandemic may have inadvertently provided a privacy fix of its own — or for police , a brand new crisis .
A Homeland Security intelligence note dated May 22 expresses this law enforcement anxiety , as public health wisdom clashes with the prerogatives of local and federal police @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The bulletin , drafted by the DHS Intelligence Enterprise Counterterrorism Mission Center in conjunction with a variety of other agencies , including Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement , “ examines the potential impacts that widespread use of protective masks could have on security operations that incorporate face recognition systems — such as video cameras , image processing hardware and software , and image recognition algorithms — to monitor public spaces during the ongoing Covid-19 public health emergency and in the months after the pandemic subsides.
” The Minnesota @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that is part of a controversial national network , distributed the notice on May 26 , as protests were forming over the killing of George Floyd .
In the weeks that followed , the center actively monitored the protests and pushed the narrative that law enforcement was under attack .
Email logs included in the BlueLeaks archive show that the note was also sent to city and state government officials and private security officers in Colorado and , inexplicably , to a hospital and a community college .
Curiously , the bulletin fixates @ @ @ @ @ @ @ adversaries ” of U.S. law enforcement evading facial recognition by cynically exploiting the current public health guidelines about mask usage .
“ We assess violent extremists and other criminals who have historically maintained an interest in avoiding face recognition , ” the bulletin reads , “ are likely to opportunistically seize upon public safety measures recommending the wearing of face masks to hinder the effectiveness of face recognition systems in public spaces by security partners.
” The notice concedes that “ while we have no specific information that violent extremists or other criminals @ @ @ @ @ @ @ face coverings to conduct attacks , some of these entities have previously expressed interest in avoiding face recognition and promulgated simple instructions to conceal one ’ s identity , both prior to and during the current Covid-19 pandemic.
” This claim is supported by a single reference to a member of an unnamed “ white supremacist extremist online forum ” who suggested attacks on critical infrastructure sites “ while wearing a breathing mask to hide a perpetrators [ sic ] identity.
” The only other evidence given is internet chatter from before the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a broader surveillance angst : “ Face Recognition Systems Likely to be Less Effective as Widespread Wear of Face Coverings for Public Safety Purposes Continue , ” reads another header .
Even if Homeland Security seems focused on hypothetical instances of violent terrorists using cloth masks to dodge smart cameras , the new public health status quo represents a clear threat to algorithmic policing : “ We assess face recognition systems used to support security operations in public spaces will be less effective while widespread public use of facemasks , including partial and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the public to limit the spread of Covid-19.
” Even after mandatory mask orders are lifted , the bulletin frets , the newly epidemiologically aware American public is likely to keep wearing them , which would “ continue to impact the effectiveness of face recognition systems.
” The battle over masks predates the pandemic .
During the 2011 Occupy Wall Street protests , the New York City Police Department pulled legal gymnastics to arrest demonstrators donning grinning Guy Fawkes masks popularized by the hactivist group Anonymous , citing an 1845 law that bans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ covering their faces in public except at “ a masquerade party or like entertainment.
” Bans in states around the country followed , often in response to protest movements .
In 2017 , for example , North Dakota banned masks amid protests over the Dakota Access pipeline .
Other anti-mask laws were designed to prevent Ku Klux Klan gatherings , though often with the primary aim of protecting white elites .
The Homeland Security document cites as cause for concern tactics used in recent pro-democracy demonstrations in Hong Kong .
In that movement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ China ’ s sophisticated surveillance state , police carried around cameras attached to poles , presumably to capture the faces of protesters .
Demonstrators responded by shining laser pointers at police , sawing down lampposts mounted with cameras , and masking up .
“ At first only the militants wore masks , ” Chit Wai John Mok , a Ph.D. student in sociology who studies social movements , told The Intercept .
“ But later on when even peaceful assemblies or marches were also banned , most protesters , moderates or militants , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ too , authorities saw masks as a problem .
Last October , Chief Executive Carrie Lam banned face coverings at protests , further enraging protesters .
In March , as Covid-19 spread , the government abruptly reversed its policy and began requiring people to wear masks in public places .
In the past few months , companies around the world have scrambled to adapt their systems to facial coverings , with a few claiming that they can identify masked faces .
So far , there is little evidence to support these claims .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ algorithms by photoshopping masks onto images from existing datasets , which could lead to significant errors .
To use facial recognition to identify individuals on the street , “ it would be best to have lots of real life examples showing the many ways people wear masks and the different angles they get captured , ” Charles Rollet , an analyst with IPVM , an independent group that tracks surveillance technology , told The Intercept .
Without such images , he added , “ There ’ s a risk of a substantially higher @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a law enforcement setting , could lead to wrongful arrests or worse.
” IPVM tested four facial recognition systems in February and found that their performance was drastically reduced with masked faces .
Homeland Security ’ s Customs and Border Protection , which uses facial recognition screening on international travelers , has also claimed that its technology works on masked faces .
In that scenario , however , travelers look straight into the camera — an angle that makes it easier to identify them , even with masks .
Homeland Security has recently @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the use of facial recognition by CBP .
In December , following public outcry , department officials walked back plans to make facial recognition of U.S. citizens mandatory in airports when they fly to or from international destinations .
Current protocols allow citizens to opt out of facial recognition screening .
Even as Homeland Security warned in the document of the ostensible risks posed by masked “ violent adversaries , ” the agency cautioned about violence perpetrated by anti-maskers .
The same day that the Minnesota Fusion Center distributed the intelligence note , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some people viewed mask orders as “ government overreach ” — and would sooner fight than cover their faces .
“ There have been multiple incidents across the United States , ” the second document read , “ of individuals engaging in assaults on law enforcement , a park ranger , and essential business employees in response to requests to wear face masks and to abide by social distancing policies .
”

While doctors and politicians still struggle to convince Americans to take the barest of precautions against Covid-19 by wearing a mask, the Department of Homeland Security has an opposite concern, according to an “intelligence note” found among the BlueLeaks trove of law enforcement documents: Masks are breaking police facial recognition.
The rapid global spread and persistent threat of the coronavirus has presented an obvious roadblock to facial recognition’s similar global expansion. Suddenly everyone is covering their faces. Even in ideal conditions, facial recognition technologies often struggle with accuracy and have a particularly dismal track record when it comes to identifying faces that aren’t white or male. Some municipalities, startled by the civil liberties implications of inaccurate and opaque software in the hands of unaccountable and overly aggressive police, have begun banning facial recognition software outright. But the global pandemic may have inadvertently provided a privacy fix of its own — or for police, a brand new crisis.
A Homeland Security intelligence note dated May 22 expresses this law enforcement anxiety, as public health wisdom clashes with the prerogatives of local and federal police who increasingly rely on artificial intelligence tools. The bulletin, drafted by the DHS Intelligence Enterprise Counterterrorism Mission Center in conjunction with a variety of other agencies, including Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, “examines the potential impacts that widespread use of protective masks could have on security operations that incorporate face recognition systems — such as video cameras, image processing hardware and software, and image recognition algorithms — to monitor public spaces during the ongoing Covid-19 public health emergency and in the months after the pandemic subsides.”
The Minnesota Fusion Center, a post-9/11 intelligence agency that is part of a controversial national network, distributed the notice on May 26, as protests were forming over the killing of George Floyd. In the weeks that followed, the center actively monitored the protests and pushed the narrative that law enforcement was under attack. Email logs included in the BlueLeaks archive show that the note was also sent to city and state government officials and private security officers in Colorado and, inexplicably, to a hospital and a community college.
The new public health status quo represents a clear threat to algorithmic policing.
Curiously, the bulletin fixates on a strange scenario: “violent adversaries” of U.S. law enforcement evading facial recognition by cynically exploiting the current public health guidelines about mask usage. “We assess violent extremists and other criminals who have historically maintained an interest in avoiding face recognition,” the bulletin reads, “are likely to opportunistically seize upon public safety measures recommending the wearing of face masks to hinder the effectiveness of face recognition systems in public spaces by security partners.” The notice concedes that “while we have no specific information that violent extremists or other criminals in the United States are using protective face coverings to conduct attacks, some of these entities have previously expressed interest in avoiding face recognition and promulgated simple instructions to conceal one’s identity, both prior to and during the current Covid-19 pandemic.” This claim is supported by a single reference to a member of an unnamed “white supremacist extremist online forum” who suggested attacks on critical infrastructure sites “while wearing a breathing mask to hide a perpetrators [sic] identity.” The only other evidence given is internet chatter from before the pandemic.
But the bulletin also reflects a broader surveillance angst: “Face Recognition Systems Likely to be Less Effective as Widespread Wear of Face Coverings for Public Safety Purposes Continue,” reads another header. Even if Homeland Security seems focused on hypothetical instances of violent terrorists using cloth masks to dodge smart cameras, the new public health status quo represents a clear threat to algorithmic policing: “We assess face recognition systems used to support security operations in public spaces will be less effective while widespread public use of facemasks, including partial and full face covering, is practiced by the public to limit the spread of Covid-19.” Even after mandatory mask orders are lifted, the bulletin frets, the newly epidemiologically aware American public is likely to keep wearing them, which would “continue to impact the effectiveness of face recognition systems.”
The battle over masks predates the pandemic. During the 2011 Occupy Wall Street protests, the New York City Police Department pulled legal gymnastics to arrest demonstrators donning grinning Guy Fawkes masks popularized by the hactivist group Anonymous, citing an 1845 law that bans groups of two or more people from covering their faces in public except at “a masquerade party or like entertainment.” Bans in states around the country followed, often in response to protest movements. In 2017, for example, North Dakota banned masks amid protests over the Dakota Access pipeline. Other anti-mask laws were designed to prevent Ku Klux Klan gatherings, though often with the primary aim of protecting white elites.
The Homeland Security document cites as cause for concern tactics used in recent pro-democracy demonstrations in Hong Kong. In that movement, which coincided with the emergence of China’s sophisticated surveillance state, police carried around cameras attached to poles, presumably to capture the faces of protesters. Demonstrators responded by shining laser pointers at police, sawing down lampposts mounted with cameras, and masking up. “At first only the militants wore masks,” Chit Wai John Mok, a Ph.D. student in sociology who studies social movements, told The Intercept. “But later on when even peaceful assemblies or marches were also banned, most protesters, moderates or militants, wore them.”
In Hong Kong, too, authorities saw masks as a problem. Last October, Chief Executive Carrie Lam banned face coverings at protests, further enraging protesters. In January, as Covid-19 spread, the government abruptly reversed its policy and began encouraging people to wear masks in public places.
In the past few months, companies around the world have scrambled to adapt their systems to facial coverings, with a few claiming that they can identify masked faces. So far, there is little evidence to support these claims. Some companies appear to have updated their algorithms by photoshopping masks onto images from existing datasets, which could lead to significant errors. To use facial recognition to identify individuals on the street, “it would be best to have lots of real life examples showing the many ways people wear masks and the different angles they get captured,” Charles Rollet, an analyst with IPVM, an independent group that tracks surveillance technology, told The Intercept. Without such images, he added, “There’s a risk of a substantially higher false positive rate, which, in a law enforcement setting, could lead to wrongful arrests or worse.” IPVM tested four facial recognition systems in February and found that their performance was drastically reduced with masked faces.
Homeland Security’s Customs and Border Protection, which uses facial recognition screening on international travelers, has also claimed that its technology works on masked faces. In that scenario, however, travelers look straight into the camera — an angle that makes it easier to identify them, even with masks.
Homeland Security has recently come under fire for efforts to expand the use of facial recognition by CBP. In December, following public outcry, department officials walked back plans to make facial recognition of U.S. citizens mandatory in airports when they fly to or from international destinations. Current protocols allow citizens to opt out of facial recognition screening.
Even as Homeland Security warned in the document of the ostensible risks posed by masked “violent adversaries,” the agency cautioned about violence perpetrated by anti-maskers. The same day that the Minnesota Fusion Center distributed the intelligence note, it circulated a second one warning that some people viewed mask orders as “government overreach” — and would sooner fight than cover their faces. “There have been multiple incidents across the United States,” the second document read, “of individuals engaging in assaults on law enforcement, a park ranger, and essential business employees in response to requests to wear face masks and to abide by social distancing policies.”


theintercept--2020-07-16--New York Could Throw Out One in Five Mail-in Ballots in One District, Disproportionately Hitting Bro

New York Could Throw Out One in Five Mail-in Ballots in One District, Disproportionately Hitting Brooklyn

the effort to mitigate the exploding pandemic in New York , Gov .
Andrew Cuomo pushed voters toward casting their ballots by mail , which New Yorkers did in record numbers .
But while hundreds of thousands of ballots were cast , there has been significantly less energy invested in counting those votes .
The election was held on June 23 , but more than three weeks later the state is nowhere near a final tally and is disenfranchising an extraordinary number of voters along the way .
The fate of several critical elections hangs in the balance .
Board @ @ @ @ @ @ @ show that in New York ’ s 12th Congressional District , which covers Manhattan , Queens , and Brooklyn , 20 percent of mail-in ballots will be thrown out for a variety of reasons .
The documents represent a “ preliminary staff review ” of ballots , and official decisions are ongoing .
A one-in-five disenfranchisement rate is far too high for a developed democracy , but the rate was worse in the Brooklyn part of the district , where the rejection rate in the staff review was a staggering 28 percent , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Across the city , nearly 400,000 absentee ballots were cast , meaning Cuomo ’ s handling of the election could throw out some 100,000 votes .
That ’ s roughly the number California disqualified , a number considered scandalously high though it represented just 1.5 percent of mail ballots .
Good government groups have called on Cuomo to step in and treat the vote-by-mail he ordered as more than just a public relations victory he quickly put behind himself .
But Cuomo has so far declined to do so .
In the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ precedent for President Donald Trump and the GOP-led Supreme Court to use in the fall to similarly invalidate absentee ballots .
The crisis could easily intersect with the new directive the Trump administration sent to the postal service to delay first-class mail rather than deliver it if doing so required working overtime .
Unless it ’ s reversed , the order will lead to a delay in voters receiving mail-in ballots and a delay in getting them returned .
If they come in late , the Court could use Cuomo ’ s precedent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the election , Cuomo touted a change in the law that allowed absentee ballots to be dropped in the mail in New York as late as Election Day , June 23 .
Now those ballots are the ones least likely to be counted ; a major reason the Cuomo-run Board of Elections is using to invalidate ballots is a lack of a postmark if the ballot arrived at the BoE after that date .
Cuomo could fix this issue easily by issuing an executive order accepting all signed ballots that come in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Return mail that is postage-paid , like a ballot , is generally not postmarked — the mark is used to make sure a stamp isn ’ t re-used , but since there ’ s no stamp , the postal service doesn ’ t need to mark it — but postal service employees are instructed to postmark ballots so that they can comply with the state rules .
Still , sometimes a clerk forgets , and sometimes an entire post office forgets for days .
Something like that appears to have happened in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Manhattan voters requested 77,453 ballots and returned 47,365 : a 61 percent rate of return .
( Many of the ballots requested simply never arrived at people ’ s homes . )
Of those that were mailed in by Manhattan voters , 8,939 ballots were invalidated for a variety of reasons by the staff review .
That represents a 19 percent rejection rate .
The leading cause of invalidations appears to be a failure by the voter to have signed and dated the ballot , according to several campaigns who have been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fix that problem next election by making it clear where it needs to be signed , but for this primary , there ’ s little that can be done .
That same 19 percent rate prevailed in Queens , where 16,639 ballots were requested , 9,631 were returned , and 1,831 were rejected .
It was worse in Brooklyn , where 13,494 ballots were requested , 8,285 were returned , and 2,284 were invalidated : a rejection rate of 28 percent .
Something structural must have driven such a large disparity .
Valerie @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Board of Election , declined to comment on the staff documents , saying “ we don ’ t release numbers until we certify the election.
” If a major Brooklyn post office was not postmarking ballots , that means voters who cast legitimate , timely ballots won ’ t have theirs count through no fault of their own .
Invalidating a ballot because it has no signature may do a disservice to democracy , but at least the rule is applied uniformly across the city .
Punishing a borough because of its post @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could serve as de facto suppression of minority votes .
It also raises the question of why a postmark is preferable to extending the date by which a ballot must be received .
If a ballot is received by the Board of Elections on or before June 23 , there is no question that the voter sent it in on or before June 23 .
And , indeed , Cuomo recognizes that reality .
Vazquez-Diaz , said that any ballot received by June 23 , whether postmarked or not , is considered valid @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to determine timeliness is the postmark , ” Vazquez-Diaz said — unless an executive or judicial order changed the criteria for timeliness to make votes received within reasonable mail delivery valid .
But if a ballot was dropped in the mail on June 23 , an option that was repeatedly trumpeted by Cuomo , it likely wouldn ’ t arrive at the BoE until several days later .
An order that deemed any ballot received by , say , the end of the week , June 26 , might make valid a handful @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mail the day after the scheduled election .
But not accepting any ballots that arrived after June 23 without a postmark necessarily disenfranchises thousands of voters who did cast their ballots on time .
And a ballot dropped in a mailbox on June 23 might not have been picked up by a letter carrier until the next day , giving it a postmark of June 24 , but it should be no less of a legal vote than one marked with a 23 .
Cuomo is within his power to reenfranchise tens of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ballot received within a second-class-mail window of June 23 to be valid .
That ’ s an argument being made by the campaign of Emily Gallagher , who challenged 48-year incumbent Joseph Lentol for a Brooklyn-based State Assembly seat .
Gallagher was trailing by nearly 2,000 votes after Election Day , but is within striking distance depending on how absentees go , and how many are counted .
Andrew Epstein , Gallagher ’ s campaign manager , said that the campaign is working with attorneys to file an injunction that would block the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that arrived close to the election .
Like other insurgent candidates with a strong grassroots organizing component , Gallagher appears to have done significantly better with absentee ballots than on Election Day .
Indeed , her campaign ’ s analysis found that neighborhoods she won on Election Day — her strongholds — were also the neighborhoods where the most mail ballots were requested .
Where Gallagher lost , very few ballots were requested .
She trails after Election Day by roughly 1,800 votes , which is a number Epstein thinks they can make @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dependent on a sufficient number of these ballots actually being counted , ” he said .
In Gallagher ’ s district , 17,023 ballots were requested , and 9,689 were returned .
If Gallagher wins 60 percent of those votes , she ’ ll win .
But if the BoE tosses one of every three in the trash , she ’ ll lose .
could even affect the largest federal race left on the ballot , between incumbent Rep. Carolyn Maloney and her closest challenger , Suraj Patel .
Because Maloney ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Brooklyn ( most of the district ’ s voters are in Manhattan and Queens ) , the disparate disenfranchisement may not have ordinarily made much of a difference .
But the race is extremely close , so it might .
On Election Day , Maloney secured 41.7 percent of the vote in the 12th Congressional District primary , with 16,473 ballots cast in her favor .
Patel was just behind , with 15,825 , a gap of 648 votes .
Two other progressive candidates won just over 7,000 votes between them .
There @ @ @ @ @ @ @ staff still to be counted and , even with Cuomo ’ s BoE rejecting so many ballots , there ’ s reason to believe the remaining ones lean toward Patel .
According to Patel , his campaign requested a list of the 100,000-plus voters who requested ballots , and ran it through a voter database , finding that 51 percent of the ballot requests came from voters under the age of 45 : not a favorable demographic for Maloney , based on Patel ’ s analysis of the electorate as well as the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to more moderate incumbents .
The campaign worked intentionally to chase those voters and get them to return ballots , an effort that included a million calls and 400,000 text messages , his campaign spokesperson said .
Patel said that he was hoping to be within at least 4,000 votes on Election Day , a gap he hoped to make up with mail-in ballots .
Maloney has said she is confident her lead will grow when all the votes are counted , particularly in her stronghold of Manhattan .
Ballots are just now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and in the first batch , 174 were tossed for not having a postmark , suggesting the preliminary staff analysis will hew closely to the final decisions .
Patel said that 110 of those arrived on June 24 , meaning they certainly were mailed on time .
He said that their review of ballots suggests about 800 in their sliver of Brooklyn alone will be thrown out over the postmark issue .
Marcela Mitaynes , a housing activist and democratic socialist with the backing of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez , was , like Gallagher @ @ @ @ @ @ @ New York State Assembly on Election Day , behind by nearly 500 votes , but absentees pushed her over the edge .
( She told The Intercept her team had not yet determined how many are being rejected . )
On Wednesday afternoon , after the BoE tabulated around 4,000 mail-in votes , the 26-year incumbent Felix Ortiz conceded the race .
Similarly Walter Mosley , a machine-backed candidate for state Assembly and a close ally of Rep. Hakeem Jeffries , ended Election Day up roughly 600 votes over DSA and AOC-backed Phara @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Souffrant Forrest said it was so far unclear how many ballots Cuomo ’ s election board would reject .
Cuomo can not claim to have been caught off guard by the problem .
On June 22 , election reform groups sent him a letter warning that a combination of postal service neglect and his urging people to vote by mail on Election Day would lead to mass disenfranchisement if he didn ’ t act to correct it .
“ We urge you to issue an Executive Order to avoid disenfranchising voters who , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ beyond the control of any one entity , may have their absentee ballots returned to the Board of Elections with postmarks where the date is illegible or missing , ” the groups wrote .
“ Ordering that any mailed primary ballot received by the Boards of Elections by June 30 that is missing or has an illegible dated postmark be presumed to have been timely mailed is critical to protecting the fundamental voting rights of New Yorkers.
” Update : July 16 , 2020 , 2:50 p.m .
ET This story has been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ York State Assemblyman Felix Ortiz conceded the race to Marcela Mitaynes after absentee ballots were counted .

As part of the effort to mitigate the exploding pandemic in New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo pushed voters toward casting their ballots by mail, which New Yorkers did in record numbers. But while hundreds of thousands of ballots were cast, there has been significantly less energy invested in counting those votes. The election was held on June 23, but more than three weeks later the state is nowhere near a final tally and is disenfranchising an extraordinary number of voters along the way.
The fate of several critical elections hangs in the balance. Board of Election documents obtained by The Intercept show that in New York’s 12th Congressional District, which covers Manhattan, Queens, and Brooklyn, 20 percent of mail-in ballots will be thrown out for a variety of reasons. The documents represent a “preliminary staff review” of ballots, and official decisions are ongoing.
A 1-in-5 disenfranchisement rate is far too high for a developed democracy, but the rate was worse in the Brooklyn part of the district, where the rejection rate in the staff review was a staggering 28 percent, according to an analysis of the documents. Across the city, nearly 400,000 absentee ballots were cast, meaning Cuomo’s handling of the election could throw out some 100,000 votes. That’s roughly the number California disqualified, a number considered scandalously high though it represented just 1.5 percent of mail ballots.
Good government groups have called on Cuomo to step in and treat the vote-by-mail he ordered as more than just a public relations victory he quickly put behind himself. But Cuomo has so far declined to do so. In the process, he could be establishing a precedent for President Donald Trump and the GOP-led Supreme Court to use in the fall to similarly invalidate absentee ballots. The crisis could easily intersect with the new directive the Trump administration sent to the postal service to delay first-class mail rather than deliver it if doing so required working overtime. Unless it’s reversed, the order will lead to a delay in voters receiving mail-in ballots and a delay in getting them returned. If they come in late, the Court could use Cuomo’s precedent to throw out millions of ballots.
In the lead-up to the election, Cuomo touted a change in the law that allowed absentee ballots to be dropped in the mail in New York as late as Election Day, June 23. Now those ballots are the ones least likely to be counted; a major reason the Cuomo-run Board of Elections is using to invalidate ballots is a lack of a postmark if the ballot arrived at the BoE after that date. Cuomo could fix this issue easily by issuing an executive order accepting all signed ballots that come in within a few days of the deadline.
If a major Brooklyn post office was not postmarking ballots, that means voters who cast legitimate, timely ballots won’t have theirs count through no fault of their own.
Return mail that is postage-paid, like a ballot, is generally not postmarked — the mark is used to make sure a stamp isn’t re-used, but since there’s no stamp, the postal service doesn’t need to mark it — but postal service employees are instructed to postmark ballots so that they can comply with the state rules. Still, sometimes a clerk forgets, and sometimes an entire post office forgets for days. Something like that appears to have happened in Brooklyn.
In the 12th Congressional District, Manhattan voters requested 77,453 ballots and returned 47,365: a 61 percent rate of return. (Many of the ballots requested simply never arrived at people’s homes.)
Of those that were mailed in by Manhattan voters, 8,939 ballots were invalidated for a variety of reasons by the staff review. That represents a 19 percent rejection rate. The leading cause of invalidations appears to be a failure by the voter to have signed and dated the ballot, according to several campaigns who have been monitoring the process. Election officials can fix that problem next election by making it clear where it needs to be signed, but for this primary, there’s little that can be done.
Left/Top: Ballot from NY, Right/Bottom: Ballot from CA. Photos: Provided to The Intercept
That same 19 percent rate prevailed in Queens, where 16,639 ballots were requested, 9,631 were returned, and 1,831 were rejected. It was worse in Brooklyn, where 13,494 ballots were requested, 8,285 were returned, and 2,284 were invalidated: a rejection rate of 28 percent. Something structural must have driven such a large disparity.
Valerie Vazquez-Diaz, a spokesperson for the NYC Board of Election, declined to comment on the staff documents, saying “we don’t release numbers until we certify the election.”
If a major Brooklyn post office was not postmarking ballots, that means voters who cast legitimate, timely ballots won’t have theirs count through no fault of their own. Invalidating a ballot because it has no signature may do a disservice to democracy, but at least the rule is applied uniformly across the city. Punishing a borough because of its post office is a different matter, and could serve as de facto suppression of minority votes.
It also raises the question of why a postmark is preferable to extending the date by which a ballot must be received. If a ballot is received by the Board of Elections on or before June 23, there is no question that the voter sent it in on or before June 23. And, indeed, Cuomo recognizes that reality. Vazquez-Diaz, said that any ballot received by June 23, whether postmarked or not, is considered valid. “The only way for us to determine timeliness is the postmark,” Vazquez-Diaz said — unless an executive or judicial order changed the criteria for timeliness to make votes received within reasonable mail delivery valid.
Do you have a story about mail-in ballots you want to share? Email us at tips@theintercept.com or use one of these secure methods to contact a reporter.
But if a ballot was dropped in the mail on June 23, an option that was repeatedly trumpeted by Cuomo, it likely wouldn’t arrive at the BoE until several days later. An order that deemed any ballot received by, say, the end of the week, June 26, might make valid a handful of ballots that were dropped in the mail the day after the scheduled election. But not accepting any ballots that arrived after June 23 without a postmark necessarily disenfranchises thousands of voters who did cast their ballots on time. And a ballot dropped in a mailbox on June 23 might not have been picked up by a letter carrier until the next day, giving it a postmark of June 24, but it should be no less of a legal vote than one marked with a 23. Cuomo is within his power to reenfranchise tens of thousands of New Yorkers by deeming any ballot received within a second-class-mail window of June 23 to be valid.
That’s an argument being made by the campaign of Emily Gallagher, who challenged 48-year incumbent Joseph Lentol for a Brooklyn-based State Assembly seat. Gallagher was trailing by nearly 2,000 votes after Election Day, but is within striking distance depending on how absentees go, and how many are counted. Andrew Epstein, Gallagher’s campaign manager, said that the campaign is working with attorneys to file an injunction that would block the BoE from invalidating ballots without a postmark that arrived close to the election.
Like other insurgent candidates with a strong grassroots organizing component, Gallagher appears to have done significantly better with absentee ballots than on Election Day. Indeed, her campaign’s analysis found that neighborhoods she won on Election Day — her strongholds — were also the neighborhoods where the most mail ballots were requested. Where Gallagher lost, very few ballots were requested. She trails after Election Day by roughly 1,800 votes, which is a number Epstein thinks they can make up. “But that’s dependent on a sufficient number of these ballots actually being counted,” he said.
In Gallagher’s district, 17,023 ballots were requested, and 9,689 were returned. If Gallagher wins 60 percent of those votes, she’ll win. But if the BoE tosses one of every three in the trash, she’ll lose.
The postmark issue could even affect the largest federal race left on the ballot, between incumbent Rep. Carolyn Maloney and her closest challenger, Suraj Patel.
Because Maloney’s district covers such a small sliver of Brooklyn (most of the district’s voters are in Manhattan and Queens), the disparate disenfranchisement may not have ordinarily made much of a difference. But the race is extremely close, so it might.
On Election Day, Maloney secured 41.7 percent of the vote in the 12th Congressional District primary, with 16,473 ballots cast in her favor. Patel was just behind, with 15,825, a gap of 648 votes. Two other progressive candidates won just over 7,000 votes between them.
There are some 52,054 ballots deemed valid by staff still to be counted and, even with Cuomo’s BoE rejecting so many ballots, there’s reason to believe the remaining ones lean toward Patel. According to Patel, his campaign requested a list of the 100,000-plus voters who requested ballots, and ran it through a voter database, finding that 51 percent of the ballot requests came from voters under the age of 45: not a favorable demographic for Maloney, based on Patel’s analysis of the electorate as well as the pattern of younger voters favoring progressive challengers to more moderate incumbents. The campaign worked intentionally to chase those voters and get them to return ballots, an effort that included a million calls and 400,000 text messages, his campaign spokesperson said. Patel said that he was hoping to be within at least 4,000 votes on Election Day, a gap he hoped to make up with mail-in ballots. Maloney has said she is confident her lead will grow when all the votes are counted, particularly in her stronghold of Manhattan.
Ballots are just now being counted officially in the Patel-Maloney race, and in the first batch, 174 were tossed for not having a postmark, suggesting the preliminary staff analysis will hew closely to the final decisions. Patel said that 110 of those arrived on June 24, meaning they certainly were mailed on time. He said that their review of ballots suggests about 800 in their sliver of Brooklyn alone will be thrown out over the postmark issue.
Marcela Mitaynes, a housing activist and democratic socialist with the backing of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, was, like Gallagher, trailing for a seat in the New York State Assembly on Election Day, behind by nearly 500 votes, but absentees pushed her over the edge. (She told The Intercept her team had not yet determined how many are being rejected.) On Wednesday afternoon, after the BoE tabulated around 4,000 mail-in votes, the 26-year incumbent Felix Ortiz conceded the race.
wow. source just shared this – @FelixWOrtiz concedes on his FB page, @marcelaforny likely headed to Albany pic.twitter.com/UlPE7UEohR — Emma Whitford (@emma_a_whitford) July 16, 2020
Similarly Walter Mosley, a machine-backed candidate for state Assembly and a close ally of Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, ended Election Day up roughly 600 votes over DSA and AOC-backed Phara Souffrant Forrest, a union nurse. Souffrant Forrest said it was so far unclear how many ballots Cuomo’s election board would reject.
Cuomo cannot claim to have been caught off guard by the problem. On June 22, election reform groups sent him a letter warning that a combination of postal service neglect and his urging people to vote by mail on Election Day would lead to mass disenfranchisement if he didn’t act to correct it. “We urge you to issue an Executive Order to avoid disenfranchising voters who, because of a perfect storm of circumstances beyond the control of any one entity, may have their absentee ballots returned to the Board of Elections with postmarks where the date is illegible or missing,” the groups wrote. “Ordering that any mailed primary ballot received by the Boards of Elections by June 30 that is missing or has an illegible dated postmark be presumed to have been timely mailed is critical to protecting the fundamental voting rights of New Yorkers.”
Update: July 16, 2020, 2:50 p.m. ET
This story has been updated to reflect the fact that New York State Assemblyman Felix Ortiz conceded the race to Marcela Mitaynes after absentee ballots were counted.


theintercept--2020-07-16--Coronavirus Cases Are Increasing at Texas Jail Where Efforts to Release People Amid Pandemic Fell Ap

Coronavirus Cases Are Increasing at Texas Jail Where Efforts to Release People Amid Pandemic Fell Apart

a criminal justice group warned that a Houston , Texas , jail that experienced a Covid-19 outbreak was on track to eclipse its pre-pandemic population , the jail is again seeing a rise in coronavirus cases .
Early on in the pandemic , the Harris County judge , sheriff , and local advocates collaborated to reduce the jail population , primarily through “ compassionate release ” for people detained on nonviolent charges .
Those efforts were stalled due to competing orders from state and local judges .
Now , local officials are putting the blame on one another for letting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ home to the one of the largest incarcerated populations in the country — backslide .
Since the start of the coronavirus outbreak to date , close to 1,000 people held in the jail have tested positive for Covid-19 .
One detained person and more than 12 staff were recently hospitalized with the virus , and two people who were incarcerated at the jail have died from it .
The jail saw a spike in mid-April , with nearly 200 cases being reported at that time .
Also in mid-April , the number of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a low point of 7,363 , the Houston Chronicle reported , and began to climb back to pre-pandemic levels — when the jail held more than 8,900 people — soon after .
The number of coronavirus cases dropped to 27 a few weeks ago , but as of July 16 , there were 76 cases , according to Jason Spencer , spokesperson for Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez .
Spencer said the majority of new cases are people who were recently arrested and are being tested during booking .
The increase in cases @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in coronavirus cases throughout Texas , including in Houston .
City officials are now calling for another lockdown .
The story of how Harris County handled the ongoing pandemic could have been a model for other cities with large numbers of incarcerated people .
Law enforcement officials and advocates worked together early on to successfully cut the jail population and stop the spread of coronavirus inside the facility .
Gonzalez and Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo called in late March for “ compassionate release.
” The jail cut its population by more than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ end of April .
But a March 30 executive order from Texas Republican Gov .
Greg Abbott — blocking release for people serving time for crimes involving physical violence or threats of such — set off mass confusion as to who can be released and under what conditions , and effectively put a hold on those efforts .
The jail population started steadily increasing again in late April .
Now , as advocates continue to push for the release of people who remain behind bars — many held in pretrial detention simply because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — officials are blaming one another and insisting their hands are tied .
“ A jail is an extremely dangerous place for a person to sit out a deadly pandemic , ” Amanda Woog , executive director of the Texas Fair Defense Project , a nonprofit focused on rights for low-income defendants , told The Intercept , “ and it is unconscionable for wealth to determine whether a person can be home socially distancing or held in a jail with thousands of other people.
” facility is on track to eclipse its pre-coronavirus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the report released in June by the Justice Management Institute , a local nonprofit focused on criminal justice that ’ s been consulting for the county for the last five years .
The report , addressed to Hidalgo and Harris County commissioners , said issues in the jail system had persisted long before the pandemic , and pointed to the jail system ’ s “ inability to handle the volume of felony cases , ” leading to long delays and prolonged periods of pretrial incarceration .
Harris County is still wading through a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Hurricane Harvey , which flooded multiple floors of the 20-story courthouse and shut it down for nine months starting in September 2017 .
The report noted 87 percent of people in the jail who have cases before the district court are being held pretrial .
In total , the Harris County jail can hold 10,500 people .
Today , at least 6,255 of the 8,010 people currently incarcerated are in pretrial proceedings .
Inside jails , social distancing and isolation in response to coronavirus can mean extended solitary confinement .
And with backlogs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the closure of courts , pretrial detainees — who have not been convicted of crimes — face extended jail time and additional obstacles to obtaining release .
The JMI report recommends that elected officials dismiss all nonviolent felony cases older than nine months .
“ Given the gravity of the circumstances , every entity in the criminal justice system must make uncomfortable , but necessary changes , ” the report said , detailing a course of action for judges to begin reviewing cases .
Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg ’ s office @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they agreed with calls from the JMI report and advocates to dismiss nonviolent felony cases , saying the decision was up to judges .
“ It is up to a judge in every instance to decide which defendants should be released and under what conditions , ” spokesperson Michael Kolenc said in a statement .
State District Judge DaSean Jones , who works on felony cases , disagreed with that assessment .
“ Judges do not dismiss cases , ” Jones told The Intercept .
“ The District Attorney has the power to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a case .
For this reason , a call of the Judges to dismiss cases is misguided , ” he said .
Jones was elected in 2018 on a reform platform , backed by the Democratic Socialists of America .
Audia Jones , his wife , ran unsuccessfully against Ogg for district attorney in March .
Specifics in the chain of command for releasing people differ from county to county , “ but what remains the same is that elected prosecutors have a bully pulpit , ” said Miriam Krinsky , executive director @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nonprofit focused on criminal justice reform .
“ They have tremendous discretion in deciding when to charge , what to charge , who to charge , and whether to seek detention .
And their recommendation carries great weight .
But even if they don ’ t control every lever of change , ” she explained , “ they can champion change in significant ways.
” “ This is a moment where we have a ticking time bomb inside our correctional facilities , ” Krinsky said .
“ And for DAs not to do @ @ @ @ @ @ @ influence things that they don ’ t control , I think , is really tragic.
” order , Abbott framed efforts to halt jail releases as a matter of public safety and health .
Release of people “ charged with , convicted of , or having a history of offenses involving physical violence ” or threats of such would “ gravely threaten public safety ” and “ hinder efforts to cope with the COVID-19 disaster , ” the order read .
The order limited judges ’ discretion to release people on personal bond @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sentence based on good conduct .
Exercising emergency judicial powers conferred under the current pandemic , Hidalgo on April 1 issued an executive order directing officials to release people held pretrial on nonviolent charges .
The order called on the sheriff to promptly provide a list of eligible detainees .
Two days later , another Harris County judge , Herb Ritchie , signed an order voiding Hidalgo ’ s .
The sheriff ’ s office tweeted that they would stop releasing people as the confusion was sorted out .
On April 8 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ American Civil Liberties Union sued Abbott and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in response to Abbott ’ s executive order .
The groups argued that the order violated the Constitution by limiting judicial discretion on certain releases and exceeded his pandemic emergency powers .
On April 23 , the Texas Supreme Court ruled in Abbott ’ s favor .
In two cases filed by incarcerated people seeking release , lower courts , one in Travis County on April 10 and the other in Harris County on May 28 , found parts of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dealt with an individual good time case , and ever since then , the sheriff has stopped holding people past their good time date , Woog said .
Despite that , the jail population continues to increase — as does the number of coronavirus cases .
Once it was clear that large scale release was stalling in courts , the sheriff ’ s office shifted their focus to “ How do we contain the spread of the virus among our population , and how do we make the best out of this situation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ option in a jail with 8,000 inmates , ” said Spencer , the sheriff ’ s spokesperson .
“ As our general free world population has seen an increase in cases , our biggest threat right now is new bookings.
” The jail has tested more than 4,600 people to date , a little over half its population .
Once people are set to be detained for more than a few days , they ’ re screened and quarantined with other new arrivals .
Advocacy groups lament the sheriff for not pushing harder @ @ @ @ @ @ @ described the role sheriffs play as a “ bully pulpit or coordination role .
… The sheriff can ring the alarm about the dangerous conditions in the jail , accelerate release using good time and other credits and identify populations of people who shouldn ’ t be coming into the jail or should be released from the jail.
” in Harris County , examples from other cities across the country suggest that the “ dramatic reset ” taking place across the criminal justice system may stick , ” Krinsky said .
At least @ @ @ @ @ @ @ varying methods to cut incarcerated populations , including expanded use of citations as an alternative to typical arrests , according to FJP .
“ There have been significant strides around the country , and most of those strides have been the local level , to reduce jail populations in a variety of ways , ” Krinsky said .
Action by law enforcement officials in some of the nation ’ s largest cities — including Houston , Los Angeles , and Nashville — led to the release of large numbers of people from incarceration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in March .
Los Angeles County is aiming to maintain its lower jail numbers , and , following pressure from activists , the city council voted to cut the police department ’ s budget by $ 150 million .
In other cities like Baltimore , Seattle , and Durham , district attorneys have moved quickly to change filing and sentencing practices to help cut jail populations .
In Washington , D.C. , police have been issuing more citations rather than making arrests , Washingtonian Magazine reported .
District police on March 17 issued @ @ @ @ @ @ @ include additional low-level offenses like traffic violations and shoplifting .
That change was part of early efforts to avoid overcrowding in jails and halt the spread of the coronavirus .
Switching from routine arrests to citations has the potential to curb incidents of police brutality and police killings by limiting police contact with civilians .
Cutting back on arrests could circumvent situations that escalate and end in killings , like that of George Floyd , or Rayshard Brooks in Atlanta , who spoke with police for close to 30 minutes before they tried @ @ @ @ @ @ @ killed him .
There have been more than 500 instances of police brutality nationwide since Minneapolis police killed Floyd on May 25 , Vice reported .
Some cities are at risk of moving backward .
In New York , elected officials and police have tried to attribute increases in civilian crime ( amid ongoing protests against police brutality , a pandemic , and an economic crisis ) to relaxing bail reform and releasing people from detention .
But that ’ s misleading , Krinsky said .
San Francisco reduced its jail population by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and “ crime hasn ’ t gone up .
There hasn ’ t been a massive public safety risk posed by limiting the number of people we bring into the justice system.
” Even as jail populations are plummeting around the country , the population of prisons — which tend to hold people already convicted of a crime and sentenced to more than one year — are largely staying stagnant or continuing to increase , Krinsky added .
“ It may be hard to change attitudes nationwide , ” she said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ think that there has been an awakening to the fact that we ’ ve been incarcerating too many people for too long .
And it doesn ’ t have to be this way .
”

A month after a criminal justice group warned that a Houston, Texas, jail that experienced a Covid-19 outbreak was on track to eclipse its pre-pandemic population, the jail is again seeing a rise in coronavirus cases.
Early on in the pandemic, the Harris County judge, sheriff, and local advocates collaborated to reduce the jail population, primarily through “compassionate release” for people detained on nonviolent charges. Those efforts were stalled due to competing orders from state and local judges. Now, local officials are putting the blame on one another for letting conditions at the downtown Houston jail — home to the one of the largest incarcerated populations in the country — backslide.
Since the start of the coronavirus outbreak to date, close to 1,000 people held in the jail have tested positive for Covid-19. One detained person and more than 12 staff were recently hospitalized with the virus, and two people who were incarcerated at the jail have died from it. The jail saw a spike in mid-April, with nearly 200 cases being reported at that time. Also in mid-April, the number of people incarcerated in Harris County Jail hit a low point of 7,363, the Houston Chronicle reported, and began to climb back to pre-pandemic levels — when the jail held more than 8,900 people — soon after. The number of coronavirus cases dropped to 27 a few weeks ago, but as of July 16, there were 76 cases, according to Jason Spencer, spokesperson for Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez. Spencer said the majority of new cases are people who were recently arrested and are being tested during booking.
The increase in cases at the jail coincides with an uptick in coronavirus cases throughout Texas, including in Houston. City officials are now calling for another lockdown.
The story of how Harris County handled the ongoing pandemic could have been a model for other cities with large numbers of incarcerated people. Law enforcement officials and advocates worked together early on to successfully cut the jail population and stop the spread of coronavirus inside the facility. Gonzalez and Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo called in late March for “compassionate release.” The jail cut its population by more than 1,500 people between early March and the end of April. But a March 30 executive order from Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott — blocking release for people serving time for crimes involving physical violence or threats of such — set off mass confusion as to who can be released and under what conditions, and effectively put a hold on those efforts. The jail population started steadily increasing again in late April.
“It is unconscionable for wealth to determine whether a person can be home socially distancing or held in a jail with thousands of other people.”
Now, as advocates continue to push for the release of people who remain behind bars — many held in pretrial detention simply because they cannot afford to post bail — officials are blaming one another and insisting their hands are tied.
“A jail is an extremely dangerous place for a person to sit out a deadly pandemic,” Amanda Woog, executive director of the Texas Fair Defense Project, a nonprofit focused on rights for low-income defendants, told The Intercept, “and it is unconscionable for wealth to determine whether a person can be home socially distancing or held in a jail with thousands of other people.”
The Harris County facility is on track to eclipse its pre-coronavirus population by Labor Day, according to the report released in June by the Justice Management Institute, a local nonprofit focused on criminal justice that’s been consulting for the county for the last five years.
The report, addressed to Hidalgo and Harris County commissioners, said issues in the jail system had persisted long before the pandemic, and pointed to the jail system’s “inability to handle the volume of felony cases,” leading to long delays and prolonged periods of pretrial incarceration. Harris County is still wading through a yearslong backlog of court cases from after Hurricane Harvey, which flooded multiple floors of the 20-story courthouse and shut it down for nine months starting in September 2017.
The report noted 87 percent of people in the jail who have cases before the district court are being held pretrial. In total, the Harris County jail can hold 10,500 people. Today, at least 6,255 of the 8,010 people currently incarcerated are in pretrial proceedings.
Inside jails, social distancing and isolation in response to coronavirus can mean extended solitary confinement. And with backlogs of pending charges and delays due to the closure of courts, pretrial detainees — who have not been convicted of crimes — face extended jail time and additional obstacles to obtaining release.
“Given the gravity of the circumstances, every entity in the criminal justice system must make uncomfortable, but necessary changes.”
The JMI report recommends that elected officials dismiss all nonviolent felony cases older than nine months. “Given the gravity of the circumstances, every entity in the criminal justice system must make uncomfortable, but necessary changes,” the report said, detailing a course of action for judges to begin reviewing cases.
Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg’s office declined to answer specific questions on whether they agreed with calls from the JMI report and advocates to dismiss nonviolent felony cases, saying the decision was up to judges. “It is up to a judge in every instance to decide which defendants should be released and under what conditions,” spokesperson Michael Kolenc said in a statement.
State District Judge DaSean Jones, who works on felony cases, disagreed with that assessment. “Judges do not dismiss cases,” Jones told The Intercept. “The District Attorney has the power to reject the acceptance of or to dismiss a case. For this reason, a call of the Judges to dismiss cases is misguided,” he said. Jones was elected in 2018 on a reform platform, backed by the Democratic Socialists of America. Audia Jones, his wife, ran unsuccessfully against Ogg for district attorney in March.
Specifics in the chain of command for releasing people differ from county to county, “but what remains the same is that elected prosecutors have a bully pulpit,” said Miriam Krinsky, executive director of Fair and Just Prosecution, a nonprofit focused on criminal justice reform. “They have tremendous discretion in deciding when to charge, what to charge, who to charge, and whether to seek detention. And their recommendation carries great weight. But even if they don’t control every lever of change,” she explained, “they can champion change in significant ways.”
“This is a moment where we have a ticking time bomb inside our correctional facilities,” Krinsky said. “And for DAs not to do everything within their power to act and influence things that they don’t control, I think, is really tragic.”
In his executive order, Abbott framed efforts to halt jail releases as a matter of public safety and health. Release of people “charged with, convicted of, or having a history of offenses involving physical violence” or threats of such would “gravely threaten public safety” and “hinder efforts to cope with the COVID-19 disaster,” the order read. The order limited judges’ discretion to release people on personal bond or on good time, a shortened sentence based on good conduct.
Exercising emergency judicial powers conferred under the current pandemic, Hidalgo on April 1 issued an executive order directing officials to release people held pretrial on nonviolent charges. The order called on the sheriff to promptly provide a list of eligible detainees. Two days later, another Harris County judge, Herb Ritchie, signed an order voiding Hidalgo’s. The sheriff’s office tweeted that they would stop releasing people as the confusion was sorted out.
On April 8, the Texas Fair Defense Project and the American Civil Liberties Union sued Abbott and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in response to Abbott’s executive order. The groups argued that the order violated the Constitution by limiting judicial discretion on certain releases and exceeded his pandemic emergency powers. On April 23, the Texas Supreme Court ruled in Abbott’s favor. In two cases filed by incarcerated people seeking release, lower courts, one in Travis County on April 10 and the other in Harris County on May 28, found parts of the order unconstitutional.
The May 28 case dealt with an individual good time case, and ever since then, the sheriff has stopped holding people past their good time date, Woog said. Despite that, the jail population continues to increase — as does the number of coronavirus cases.
“As our general free world population has seen an increase in cases, our biggest threat right now is new bookings.”
Once it was clear that large scale release was stalling in courts, the sheriff’s office shifted their focus to “How do we contain the spread of the virus among our population, and how do we make the best out of this situation knowing that social distancing is not an option in a jail with 8,000 inmates,” said Spencer, the sheriff’s spokesperson. “As our general free world population has seen an increase in cases, our biggest threat right now is new bookings.”
The jail has tested more than 4,600 people to date, a little over half its population. Once people are set to be detained for more than a few days, they’re screened and quarantined with other new arrivals.
Advocacy groups lament the sheriff for not pushing harder following the lower court decisions. Woog described the role sheriffs play as a “bully pulpit or coordination role. … The sheriff can ring the alarm about the dangerous conditions in the jail, accelerate release using good time and other credits and identify populations of people who shouldn’t be coming into the jail or should be released from the jail.”
Despite the backtracking in Harris County, examples from other cities across the country suggest that the “dramatic reset” taking place across the criminal justice system may stick,” Krinsky said.
At least 20 cities across the U.S. have used varying methods to cut incarcerated populations, including expanded use of citations as an alternative to typical arrests, according to FJP. “There have been significant strides around the country, and most of those strides have been the local level, to reduce jail populations in a variety of ways,” Krinsky said.
Action by law enforcement officials in some of the nation’s largest cities — including Houston, Los Angeles, and Nashville — led to the release of large numbers of people from incarceration as the coronavirus hit the United States in March. Los Angeles County is aiming to maintain its lower jail numbers, and, following pressure from activists, the city council voted to cut the police department’s budget by $150 million. In other cities like Baltimore, Seattle, and Durham, district attorneys have moved quickly to change filing and sentencing practices to help cut jail populations.
In Washington, D.C., police have been issuing more citations rather than making arrests, Washingtonian Magazine reported. District police on March 17 issued an order changing their citation policy to include additional low-level offenses like traffic violations and shoplifting. That change was part of early efforts to avoid overcrowding in jails and halt the spread of the coronavirus.
Switching from routine arrests to citations has the potential to curb incidents of police brutality and police killings by limiting police contact with civilians. Cutting back on arrests could circumvent situations that escalate and end in killings, like that of George Floyd, or Rayshard Brooks in Atlanta, who spoke with police for close to 30 minutes before they tried to arrest him, then shot and killed him. There have been more than 500 instances of police brutality nationwide since Minneapolis police killed Floyd on May 25, Vice reported.
Some cities are at risk of moving backward. In New York, elected officials and police have tried to attribute increases in civilian crime (amid ongoing protests against police brutality, a pandemic, and an economic crisis) to relaxing bail reform and releasing people from detention. But that’s misleading, Krinsky said. San Francisco reduced its jail population by close to 50 percent, she said, and “crime hasn’t gone up. There hasn’t been a massive public safety risk posed by limiting the number of people we bring into the justice system.”
Even as jail populations are plummeting around the country, the population of prisons — which tend to hold people already convicted of a crime and sentenced to more than one year — are largely staying stagnant or continuing to increase, Krinsky added. “It may be hard to change attitudes nationwide,” she said. “But in many jurisdictions, I think that there has been an awakening to the fact that we’ve been incarcerating too many people for too long. And it doesn’t have to be this way.”