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CHECKED: Kari Henriksen wearing a mask at a polling station in Virginia. Photo: Private
Since 23 October, the Norwegian Kari Henriksen (Labor Party) controls the US elections for the OSCE. – It is very worrying that a leader sows distrust in the democratic institution such as the electoral system, he says.
Three days ago, the Norwegian election observer returned to Norway after having been in the United States since October 23. Together with his colleagues in the OSCE, he has not found any signs of electoral fraud in the US presidential elections.
– Did you see any signs of electoral fraud?
– No, we did not, answer in cash.
This comes after outgoing President Donald Trump repeatedly claimed that there has been systematic voter fraud, especially with votes by mail.
Observed
Henriksen has led a team of 50 election observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), who were invited by the United States to observe the elections. Also, there is a group of long-term observers in the United States.
It was NTB who brought up the case for the first time.
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On the day of the elections, the observers were present at the polling stations. There they talked with the poll workers, observed and saw that everything was going well.
– Did you see any irregularities?
– From the observations that reached us, it was by chance an electoral employee who asked questions with the identification of one of us, but it was immediately clarified, he says.
– The general implementation of the election was very good. There were several hundred thousand members of the electoral staff who made a formidable effort to organize this election. They had both the corona epidemic and a series of lawsuits pending. The organization itself and the practical implementation were no cause for complaint. It was a committed and dedicated constituency that did its job very well, he says.
OBSERVER: Kari Henriksen at the Storting in 2019. Photo: Trond Solberg
– very worrying
She responds that the president of the United States casts doubts on the development of the elections and the results.
– It is very worrying that a leader sows mistrust in the democratic institution such as the electoral system, without the suspicion being supported by concrete evidence, he says.
A contentious issue after the election has been claims by Republicans that their poll watchers should keep their distance while watching the count.
This applied to all observers, Henriksen says, and he believes it was handled in a good way.
– An appeal was made to the court and a note was taken. That is what should happen in a democratic society, that you have the opportunity to appeal and that you have an impartial evaluation, says Henriksen.
