Report: Little Evidence Of The Type Of Voter Fraud Targeted By ID Laws

In Fairfax County, Virginia, a voter holds their voting permit and ID card at the Washington Mill Elementary School near Mount Vernon, Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2012. Fairfax County is a Washington suburb with more than 1 mil... In Fairfax County, Virginia, a voter holds their voting permit and ID card at the Washington Mill Elementary School near Mount Vernon, Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2012. Fairfax County is a Washington suburb with more than 1 million residents and is the biggest battleground in Virginia, which is a key swing state in Tuesday’s presidential election. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) MORE LESS
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An analysis by News21 — a student reporting project based at Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism — published in the Washington Post Thursday found that there was little evidence that voter fraud was a persistent problem and in the cases that were prosecuted, the type of fraud committed would not have been prevented by voter ID laws.

News21 analyzed cases of voter fraud between 2012 and 2016 in Arizona, Ohio, Georgia, Texas and Kansas — states where GOP politicians have warned of potential voter fraud. The analysis found that while there were hundreds of allegations of voter fraud, only 38 were prosecuted successfully by the state’s attorney general’s office (however, other cases could have been litigated on a county level). Furthermore, none of the prosecutions involved the type of voter impersonation that would have been prevented by ID laws.

Rather, a third of the cases prosecuted had to do with non-voters, like poll workers and volunteers. Other prosecutions cited anecdotally by the News21 analysis involved fraudulent voting via absentee ballots, which is also not prevented by voter ID laws.

In a particularly amusing anecdote, the report cited a North Carolina case from the 2012 election. A woman in her 70s voted for herself in person, while sending in an absentee ballot for her deceased husband. She told prosecutors that it was his dying wish to vote for Mitt Romney.

News21’s findings are in line with a major 50-state analysis the organization did four years ago, that dated back to cases since 2000. That analysis found that of 2,068 allegations of voter fraud only 10 cases involved voter impersonation.

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  1. Clearly they’re in league with The Brown Stain to bring COM’NIZZUM and Shuh-REE-uh to REEL MURKA with help from the NEW BLACK ACORN ATHEIST LIVES MATTER ABORTION PANTHER FEMINAZI OCCUPY LIBRUL STREET QUEERS.

    …er, I mean, the matter “needs more study” while the laws remain in place.

  2. Just like there is little (if any) evidence that trans-gender people are a threat in public bathrooms.

    You’d think the clueless dolts in the GOP would finally catch on…

  3. Voter fraud DOES exist.
    It happens when state legislatures intentionally erect barriers to prevent the political opposition from voting.

    It’s another republican-created problem. Like ISIS. Or Trump.

  4. Do all the studies you want; these people won’t believe you. The real purpose of “voter ID laws” is to prevent citizens from voting for the Democratic candidates, thereby ensuring the continued Republican stranglehold on local, state and Federal governments. It’s sickening and unAmerican. Throw the rascals out, by which I mean, STOP VOTING FOR REPUBLICANS. They lie, cheat and steal to get what they want, all the while telling us the the real problems in this country are due to poor people and immigrants. It’s disgusting, and it has to stop.

  5. Little Evidence Of The Type Of Voter Fraud Targeted By ID Laws

    SEE! That means the vote cheaters are even sneakier than we thought.

    Therefore, we must enact even stricter voter ID laws, conduct more voter roll purges, and do away with early voting!

    It’s the only way to make sure.

    Edit: Oh…and I almost forgot…we must also reduce the number of polling locations in the areas where we suspect the cheaters live.

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