On the hunt for electoral fraud, conspiracy theorists organize “pickets”

One ​​night last month, on the recommendation of a man known online as Captain K, a small group gathered in a parking lot in Arizona and waited in folding chairs, hoping to catch people they believed were trying to destroy American democracy by submitting fake early ballots.

Captain K – as Seth Keshel, a former US Army intelligence officer who espouses voter fraud conspiracy theories himself calls – had set the plan in motion. In July, as states like Arizona geared up for their primary elections, he posted a proposal on the Telegram messaging app: “All-night patriot parties for EVERY DROP BOX IN AMERICA.” The post received more than 70,000 views.

Similar calls galvanized people in at least nine other states, signaling the latest fallout from rampant fraud conspiracy theories electioneering that roamed the Republican Party. .

In the nearly two years since former President Donald J. Trump catapulted false allegations of widespread voter fraud from the political fringes to the conservative mainstream, a constellation of its proponents have drifted from theory to theory in a frantic but fruitless search for evidence.

Many now focus on the ballot boxes — where people can deposit their votes in secure, locked containers — under the unfounded belief that mysterious agents, or so-called election mules, are stuffing them with fake ballots or otherwise tampering with them. And they recruit observers to monitor countless drop boxes across the country, exploiting the millions of Americans who have been swayed by bogus election claims.

In in most cases, organizing efforts are fledgling, with supporters posting unconfirmed plans to monitor local drop boxes. But some small-scale "settlements" have been advertised using Craigslist, Telegram, Twitter, Gab and Truth Social, the Trump-backed social media platform. Several sites dedicated to the cause have gone live this year, including at least one aimed at coordinating volunteers.

Some high-level politicians have embraced the idea. Kari Lake, the Trump-endorsed Republican nominee for Arizona governor, asked his Twitter followers if they'd be "willing to take a shift looking at a drop box to catch potential Nerds." Mules".

Supporters likened the events to harmless neighborhood watches or tailgate parties fueled by pizza and beer. But some online commentators have discussed the influx of AR-15s and other firearms, and expressed a desire to carry out citizen's arrests and log license plates. This has raised concerns among election officials and law enforcement that what supporters describe as lawful patriotic surveillance could easily escalate into illegal voter intimidation, invasion of privacy, election campaigning or confrontations.

“What we are going to be dealing with in 2022 is more of a citizen body of conspirators who have already decided there is a problem and are now looking evidence, or at least something they can turn into evidence, and use it to undermine trust. into results they don't like,” said Matthew Weil, executive director of the Elections Project at the Bipartisan Policy Center. "When your premise is that there are problems, every problem looks like a problem, especially if you have no idea what you're looking at."

Mr. Keshel, whose captain K job inspired the Arizona rally, his...