Ga. man arrested after police say he slapped voter, tried to film voting machines on election day

Georgia man arrested after police say he slapped voter, filmed voting machines on Election Day. Poll workers walk us through what happened, NEXT on Channel 2

A Georgia man was arrested after police say he recorded video of a voting machine on Election Day and then slapped a voter when he was asked to leave.

The man, who has been identified as Jesse Hunt, is also accused of behaving aggressively towards poll workers at the South Cobb Regional Library in Mableton.

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Channel  2′s Cobb County Bureau Chief Michele Newell talked to Kaylee Faulker, the location’s poll manager, who said she saw Hunt walk into the library, cast his ballot and then start recording video on his phone. It’s illegal in Georgia to take photos and videos at polling locations.

“We had a voter come in who was recording voting equipment. We had asked him multiple times to stop,” Faulkner said. “He had kind of been aggressive towards me and the other election staff and had pushed my hand away when I kind of tried to put distance between him and election materials.”

Faulkner was working that night alongside her grandfather, David McDaniel, a tradition that they have done together since Faulkner was allowed to vote.

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McDaniel said that even after they asked Hunt to stop taking pictures and moved the scanner, he still wouldn’t stop. Deputies finally had to remove him. That’s when he’s accused of slapping a voter, according to warrants.

“It was very upsetting at the time and I’m still pretty upset,” McDaniel said about the incident.

“This is the first time we ever had a situation like that,” Faulkner said.

Hunt is now facing a slew of charges including interference with poll officers, primaries and election and provoking simple battery.

Faulkner said she’s just glad that there were sheriff’s deputies on hand to help.

“It makes me glad to know that going into the runoff and having workers at my poll, I can make sure that they know there are systems in place to protect them and to keep us safe and to make sure that anyone would want to do harm to them or the system there’s a process in place for that,” Faulkner said.

Cobb Count Board of Election officials said they have ample security at the polls and get a lot of help from the Sheriff’s Office. A representative for the Secretary of State told Newell they can’t say much because the case is a pending judicial matter, but they do commend the staff for identifying the issue quickly and law enforcement for protection election administrators.

“It’s a big relief now knowing that they guy’s been found and apprehended,” McDaniel said.