Fraud Exists — only low hanging rotten fruit exposed — out of only 238 investigations, evidence of 117 illegal votes found — hundreds of irregularities remain uninvestigated — lax laws implicates much more voter fraud occurring under the radar.
On Thursday Iowa Secretary of State (SOS) Matt Schultz issued a report / update regarding the Iowa Department of Criminal Investigations (DCI) investigation into voter fraud in Iowa. The full report is available here.
The report certainly substantiates that illegal voting occurs. However, because it had such a limited focus, the low hanging rotten fruit, it does not expose what we believe to be the far more extensive voter fraud possibilities, indeed probabilities in this state. Those could be made largely unsuccessful by requiring photo ID for registration and all voting.
The DCI investigation centered on three basic cross references. 1) The matter of ineligible felons voting. That would seem to be a fairly easy after the fact crosscheck because of the records available. Only the stupidest of convicted felons would involve themselves using their own name. 2) Another element the report depended on the accuracy of federal immigration agency records and their sincere cooperation. That aspect was wanting as implicated in the Executive Summary of the SOS report. 3) A crosscheck process with cooperating states produced 100 hits indicating double voting that were investigated, some referred for possible prosecution but not all. Not all populous states participate and not all of Iowa’s border states participated as of the period of investigation.
We have included below the entire Executive summary to the report.
Background:
In March of 2012, the Iowa Secretary of State’s office compared Iowa’s voter registration records with the driver’s license records of individuals that identified themselves as non-citizens with the Iowa Department of Transportation. After comparing those records, the Iowa Secretary of State’s office found that more than 3,000 individuals registered to vote that had previously identified themselves as non- citizens. More than 1,000 of these individuals had also cast a ballot. The Iowa Secretary of State’s office was not given timely access to the federal Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database, and therefore was unable to determine if any of these individuals had become citizens before they registered to vote or cast a ballot.
On June 21, 2012, the Iowa Secretary of State’s office entered into an agreement with the Iowa Department of Public Safety’s Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) to review potential election misconduct crimes and improve the administration of federal elections. Over the last two years, DCI agents have reviewed thousands of instances of possible election misconduct. DCI’s review included cases referred by the Iowa Secretary of State’s office as well as by other state and local government agencies.
DCI Process:
DCI worked with the United States Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to review the citizenship status of the potential non-citizen registrants. After its review, DCI opened 147 investigations into potential non-citizens who cast a ballot.1 They also reviewed, but did not fully investigate, 74 potential non-citizens who registered to vote but did not cast a ballot.
DCI investigated other election misconduct cases including alleged ineligible felons who either registered to vote or registered to vote and cast a ballot. DCI opened 68 cases in which alleged felons voted or registered to vote.2 DCI also opened 23 cases of other potential election misconduct.
Of the 238 total investigations, DCI found evidence of election misconduct in 117 cases that cancelled out the votes of legitimate Iowa voters. Another 17 cases are still currently being investigated.
Referrals:
The Secretary of State’s office has requested DCI either investigate or refer to local law enforcement the 74 cases that were reviewed, but not fully investigated concerning potential non-citizens that registered to vote but did not cast a ballot.
The Secretary of State’s office will also forward 100 cases of possible double voting to local law enforcement for review and investigation as deemed necessary.4 These cases were found by the Interstate Voter Registration Crosscheck Program – also known as the Kansas Project. The Kansas Project checks a state’s voter registration information against a database containing information for 101 million voters in the 28 participating states. The 100 possible double voting cases include individuals with the exact same first name, last name, date of birth, and last four digits of their social security number that cast a ballot in Iowa and another state.
Additionally, the Iowa Secretary of State’s office also received information from county auditors indicating that there are 682 unresolved irregularities regarding voters that used Election Day Registration (EDR) procedures on November 6, 2012, who did not receive or did not respond to the voter registration follow up notice sent from the county auditor’s office.5 These cases were forwarded to county attorneys by the county auditors in accordance with Iowa law.6
Conclusion:
DCI found evidence that 117 illegal votes have been cast and 17 cases are still currently being investigated out of only 238 investigations. County attorneys have the discretion over whether to prosecute these cases. Even if the county attorneys choose not to prosecute, the initiative demonstrates that illegal voters are participating in Iowa’s elections. Any registered voter in a county, including the county attorney, can file a challenge to remove an illegal voter from the voting rolls.
DCI’s review and investigations have clearly improved the administration of elections by:
Finding illegal voters on the voter registration lists to protect legitimate Iowa voters from having their votes cancelled out by the illegal voters.
Holding illegal voters accountable for violating the law.
Uncovering inaccuracies in the state’s felon file that now permit those individuals to have their rights restored to ensure the future voting rights for these individuals.
Showing the need for the legislature to require non-citizens to update their driver’s license with the DOT upon becoming citizens to ensure accurate records.
It is important to both make sure illegal voters are not voting and to make sure every eligible voter is able to vote. The Iowa Secretary of State’s office will continue to do both.
The type of voting fraud uncovered would be inhibited by more rigorous voter identification laws and record keeping compliance and cooperation by politicized government agencies. But the real extent of voter fraud in our estimation does not come just from double voting by the same individual across state lines. That could be extensive, particularly by college students, however the SOS investigation is inadequate to uncover its true extent. Nor is it primarily from ineligible convicted felons. Nor in Iowa are we saying that fraud is done on a broad organized way directly by a dedicated group, although that is possible in Iowa under its lax rules and needs to have preventatives in place.
The scheme is more indirect by Iowa Democrats who insist on loose laws to allow for impossible prosecution of their casual schemes and the more casual “on behalf” voting their rhetoric encourages. Their scheme to prevent dependable photo voter ID and to tie up such laws is also in anticipation of immigration amnesty.*
We believe the risk and preponderance of fraudulent voting In Iowa is from forged applications for absentee voting on behalf of those not likely to vote, casually or otherwise, or presentation of ones self at the voting booth as such a person, particularly in busy general elections. It could be done on an organized basis using voting histories. One person could easily vote a half dozen times in a morning. The votes are cast. They cannot be taken back if the true voter shows up. Indeed that voter’s ballot is initially counted as provisional. It does not have to be. Such opportunities can be greatly inhibited by photo voter ID.
Under Iowa’s lax laws such fraudulent voting has little chance of prevention or discovery, even on an organized basis, particularly in our four largest counties and in college towns. The research necessary to uncover those frauds, unless the true voter, who more than likely does not even know he or she voted, happens to come forward, is very time consuming and quite probably difficult to prosecute. That a fraudulent vote occurred can be evident after expensive extensive surveys, but who did it is not. Pursuit is not likely.
No one is suggesting passive cameras in the voting area as photo documentation of who voted. That would be wrong. The best and most unobtrusive way is to require that official, common, readily available photo ID be shown by everyone at each station of the process prior to voting and to two different individuals. Reinstating traditional limitations to absentee voting is controlling there. Photo ID is point of sale security, is even handed, and does not entail any significant costs. And it is supported by great majorities of voters including Democrats.
Look at the official response of the SOS office to the posed question. Note that the question is not about photo ID it is about any ID! Bold emphasis ours.
Do I need my voter registration card to vote at the polls on election day?
No.
You are not required to produce your voter registration card to vote at the polls on election day.
Do I need to take identification with me to the polls?
Maybe.
You are encouraged to always bring identification with you when you vote.
You may be asked to show identification if:
- You registered to vote by mail after January 1, 2003, and have never voted in a Primary or General election in your county,
- You have moved from where you are registered to vote,
- Your right to vote has been challenged, or
- The precinct election officials do not know you.
If asked to show identification, you may use a current and valid photo ID or any of the following documents if they show your name and current address:
- Current utility bill (including cell phone bill),
- Current bank statement,
- Current paycheck or government check, or
- Other current government document.
The truth is most voters are run through with barely a glance. Is there any question as to why Iowa is rated so poorly as to laws protecting voting security by watch dog groups ? A very comprehensive accumulation of findings, revelations, documenting links regarding voting fraud, statistics and related matter is available in this article by James Sampson writing at Accuracy in Media: Voter Fraud: An Existential Threat to America . A collection of our posts regarding the matter is available by accessing the category at right Voting Integrity.
R Mall with DLH
* While we exercise some forbearance in not accusing Democrat leadership in Iowa of organized voter fraud, they are at least organized enablers. We have no compunction against the accusation regarding Democrat operatives in other states, that is well documented.
