Research

  • Alleged double-voting

    There are a handful of known cases in which pollbook entries and absentee or provisional ballots stubs indicate that one individual has actually voted twice. These cases are extremely rare, in part because the penalty (criminal prosecution) is so severe, and the payoff (one incremental vote) is so minimal.

    November 10, 2007
    Voting Rights & Elections
    Myth of Voter Fraud

  • Alleged voting by the dead

    There are a handful of known cases in which votes have been cast in the names of individuals who have died before the vote was submitted.

    It is far more common, however, to see allegations of epidemic voting from beyond the grave, with a chuckle and a reference to Gov. Huey Long’s quip ("When I die, I want to be buried in Louisiana, so I can stay active in politics.") or Rep. Charlie Rangel’s update (same idea, but takes place in Chicago).

    November 10, 2007
    Voting Rights & Elections
    Myth of Voter Fraud

  • Alleged voting from improper addresses

    There are a handful of known cases in which votes have been cast from improper addresses.

    November 10, 2007
    Voting Rights & Elections
    Myth of Voter Fraud

  • Alleged voting by noncitizens

    We are not aware of any documented cases in which individual noncitizens have either intentionally registered to vote or voted while knowing that they were ineligible. Given that the penalty (criminal prosecution and deportation) is so severe, and the payoff (one incremental vote) is so minimal for any individual voter, it makes sense that extremely few noncitizens would attempt to vote, knowing that doing so is illegal.

    November 10, 2007
    Voting Rights & Elections
    Myth of Voter Fraud

  • New York, 2004 and 2002

    Two reporters attempted to probe the accuracy of New York’s voter rolls by comparing them with death records and with the rolls of other states. The reports led to inflated claims of widespread fraud, of the sort commonly used to support restrictive identification requirements for voters at the polls. We examined each of the allegations of fraud by individual voters -- the only sort that ID could possibly address -- to uncover the truth behind the assertions.

    November 10, 2007
    Voting Rights & Elections
    Myth of Voter Fraud

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