The far-right extremists known as "Groypers" may have violated election laws in Arizona, reported Wired — by passing out hamburgers and hot dogs to voters.
The giveaway "was organized by the far-right College Republicans United group, in association with the Patriot Party of Arizona. It began just after polls opened at the Mesa Convention Center," said the report.
The "Groypers," whose movement was founded by white nationalist Nick Fuentes, "were helping hand out hot dogs, burgers, and cold drinks. Manning the grill was Pastor David MacLellan, a Christian nationalist pastor who is the chaplain for the Patriot Party of Arizona and subscribes to the extremist ideology of the Black Robe Regiment." MacLellan boasted to Wired, “We’re giving away hot dogs and hamburgers to folks who are doing the right thing, voting for Trump.”
But this could run afoul of vote-buying laws, which prohibit the exchange of things of values for votes.
UCLA law professor Rick Hasen said of the giveaway, “Not only is it illegal to give just to voters for one candidate, one cannot limit it only to voters. it must be made available to all people in the area, including children and others ineligible to vote, to avoid running afoul of federal law against vote buying.”
According to the report, the College Republicans United group, which split off from Arizona State University's existing College Republicans organization, explicitly promotes racist and antisemitic material: "The College Republican United’s website’s book recommendations page features two deeply antisemitic works: the Protocols of the Elders of Zion and Henry Ford’s The International Jew: The World’s Foremost Problem."
Arizona is one of the most closely-watched battleground states in the 2024 presidential election, where former President Donald Trump is hoping to reclaim the state after losing it to President Joe Biden in 2020.
