PhotoAt least three American states have turned down Russian requests to monitor polling locations during the election on Nov. 8, as United States officials portrayed the overture as little more than a Russian public relations stunt. The Russian requests come as Donald J. Trump, the Republican nominee, has claimed that the election will be “rigged.” United States officials, including Republican leaders, have forcefully denied that claim. Tom Schedler, Louisiana’s secretary of state, told Mr. Zakharov that the department was short-staffed because of recent flooding. But she also called the Russian request a “propaganda ploy” and said the F.B.I. He said Russia had not participated in international efforts to observe elections, and the request to the states amounts to “nothing more than a P.R.

Source: New York Times October 21, 2016 21:45 UTC