Virginia polling precincts are reportedly blocking maskless residents from voting on Tuesday, even in counties where mask mandates are not in place.
Matt Schlapp, chairman of the American Conservative Union, tweeted he was rejected from voting because he was maskless. “I was told at my polling station I couldn’t vote without a mask,” he said.
“Knowing what the GOP thinks about masks, isn’t this just an illegal barrier to voting?” continued Schlapp. “But I can count on one thing our judges will do nothing.”
Founder and President of Turning Point USA Charlie Kirk also tweeted reports of precincts blocking maskless voters.
“Hearing that voters in Virginia are being turned away from polls for not wearing a mask,” Charlie tweeted. “If this is true it’s unacceptable.”
“Voters CANNOT be denied their constitutional right based on an unconstitutional mandate Virginia Voters: hold the line—don’t let them block your vote,” Kirk said.
Senior Writer at Real Clear Investigations Mark Hemingway also reportedly received a notice that masks are mandatory at many polling locations.
“Just got this text. They were trying to require masks at my polling place in a jurisdiction with no mask mandate in place,” he tweeted.
The alleged text reads in part, “URGENT: Some voting locations are asking voters to wear a mask in order to vote. YOU CANNOT BE TURNED AWAY FOR NOT WEARING A MASK.”
The reports of voters being turned away for not wearing masks come as enthusiasm grows within Republican Glenn Youngkin’s campaign. Among voters in rural areas, Youngkin is polling more favorably than President Donald Trump in 2020.
Overall, Youngkin has maintained his lead over Democrat Terry McAuliffe, FiveThirtyEight’s average polling revealed Tuesday. Youngkin has steadily performed better in the polls as the race has matured. On October 15, for instance, Youngkin trailed the Democrat by three points and more than four points on August 15.
Youngkin made his final pitch to Virginia voters Monday evening in Loudoun County, Virginia, where the political fallout from Critical Race Theory in the school district made national news.
“This is our moment where we stand up for our children, for our grandchildren, for our nieces, for our nephews, for our neighbors, and we decide that we, in fact, are going to be in charge of our children’s education,” Youngkin said.
According to Politico Playbook, 1.14 million Virginians have already “voted — 858,646 in person and 283,662 by mail.” Polls close at 7:00 PM.
Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter @WendellHusebø
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