Election Integrity Commission Accuses New Hampshire of Fraud
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What’s the story?
As reported by the Washington Post, "members of the White House's Election Integrity Commission have seized on a report about same-day registration [in New Hampshire] to allege that massive fraud might have swung the state's 2016 vote."
The commission is accusing "thousands of voters of criminal activity for living in New Hampshire but holding out-of-state driver’s licenses."
Voters and election experts in the Granite State say the allegation is baseless.
Why does it matter?
In May, President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order establishing the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity to look into voter fraud during the 2016 election. The vice chairman of the commission said the numbers coming out of New Hampshire are evidence of wrongdoing.
For some, this wasn’t surprising. In February, White House policy adviser Stephen Miller told ABC News:
"Having worked before on a campaign in New Hampshire, I can tell you that this issue of busing voters into New Hampshire is widely known by anyone who’s worked in New Hampshire politics. It’s very real. It’s very serious. This morning, on this show, is not the venue for me to lay out all the evidence."
On Thursday, New Hampshire House Speaker Shawn Jasper, a Republican, said he had such evidence. Jasper, as the Post reported, "released data on same-day registrants that he'd obtained from the secretary of state's office. In November 2016, 6,540 voters had registered to vote on Election Day. As of Aug. 30, just 1,014 of those voters had obtained a New Hampshire drivers license. A few hundred voters did not obtain state licenses but had registered cars in the state."
Based on these numbers, Jasper alleged thousands of people cast fraudulent votes in the 2016 election. Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, the vice chairman of the Election Integrity Commission, also used the findings to allege widespread voter fraud, which he said could have led to Trump losing the state--and stolen a U.S. Senate seat from Republicans.
"If 59.2 percent or more of them went for [Democratic Sen. Maggie] Hassan, then the election was stolen through voter fraud," Kobach wrote in a column for Breitbart. "That's likely, since the surrounding states are Democrat (sic) strongholds."
The New Hampshire Departments of State and Safety provided the data to Jasper in a letter. In it, they offered various explanations for the numbers.
"It is likely that some unknown number of these individuals moved out of New Hampshire, it is possible that a few may have never driven in New Hampshire or have ceased driving, however, it is expected that an unknown number of the remainder continue to live and drive in New Hampshire. If they have established their residence in New Hampshire, they may have failed to obtain a New Hampshire driver’s license." (JH-2)
"Apparently, Kobach is saying that voting should be limited to people who drive cars," said David Becker, director of the Center for Election Innovation.
On Thursday night, the Washington Post reached out to voters who’d "cast ballots but held out-of-state-IDs." Various college students responded, saying they were living in New Hampshire but hadn’t changed their licenses.
What do you think?
Has the Election Integrity Commission found evidence of voter fraud? Hit the Take Action button, tell your reps, and comment below.
—Josh Herman
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(Photo Credit: smartboy10 / iStockphoto)
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