Overview
As a constitutional republic, our country depends upon free and fair elections. Unfortunately, that process is broken as election fraud, also referred to as voter fraud, is real, widespread and getting worse.
What Is Voter Fraud?
Voter fraud is illegal tampering with the process of an election. The reason (at least on paper) that voter fraud laws are in place is to protect democracy from corruption and to ensure that all who are eligible to vote can do so and have an equal vote in any given election.
Voter fraud, electoral fraud or vote rigging are intentional, illegal actions aimed at changing or influencing or forcing the results of an election – by either depressing or increasing the vote share for a particular candidate or choice.
Different Types of Election Fraud
There are many ways for criminals to steal votes and change the outcome of an election including but not limited to:
Altering the vote count: Changing the actual vote count either in a precinct or at the central location where votes are counted.
Artificial results: Election officials announce the result for a particular candidate or decision, regardless of what the electorate actually voted for.
Ballot dumps: Political operatives dump massive number (tens of thousands) of unsecured, irregular ballots in the middle of the night on election day.
Ballot petition fraud: Forging the signatures of registered voters on the ballot petitions that must be filed with election officials in some states for a candidate or issue to be listed on the official ballot.
Ballot stuffing: The submission of multiple ballots (votes) by one person “stuffing" them into the ballot box in large quantities to swing the result in a particular direction.
Blocking poll workers: Poll watchers are locked out or prevented from doing their job of tabulating votes.
Buying ballots or votes: Paying voters for their ballot or paying them to cast either an in-person or absentee ballot for a particular candidate.
Destruction or invalidation of ballots: The process of destroying or hiding ballots.
Duplicate voting: Registering in multiple locations and voting in the same election in more than one jurisdiction or state.
False registrations: Voting under fraudulent voter registrations that either use a phony name and a real or fake address or claim residence in a particular jurisdiction where the registered voter does not actually live and is not entitled to vote.
Faulty or no signature verification: Hasty or no actual signature verification allows many ineligible votes to be counted.
Fraudulent use of absentee ballots: Requesting absentee ballots and voting without the knowledge of the actual voter; or obtaining the absentee ballot from a voter and either filling it in directly and forging the voter’s signature or illegally telling the voter who to vote for.
Gerrymandering: The act of redistricting for political advantage.
Illegal “assistance” at the polls: Forcing or intimidating voters—particularly the elderly, disabled, illiterate, and those for whom English is a second language—to vote for particular candidates while supposedly providing them with “assistance.”
Impersonation fraud at the polls: Voting in the name of other legitimate voters, and voters who have died, moved away, or lost their right to vote because they are felons, but remain registered.
Inaccurate voter rolls: Inaccurate voter rolls can lead to ineligible or fake people (i.e., dead people, felons, illegal aliens, temporary foreign visitors, etc.) voting resulting in a fraudulent election. In some cases, more people vote than are registered to vote. In other case, voter registrations increase before elections but “disappear” after the elections are over.
Ineligible voting: Illegal registration and voting by individuals who are not U.S. citizens, are convicted felons, or are otherwise not eligible to vote.
Intimidation: Where people have pressure placed on them to vote for a particular candidate or option, or not vote at all. This pressure can take the form of violence or the threat of violence or persuading voters that they are or may not be eligible to vote, or that they are legally obliged to vote for a particular candidate.
Miscounting or destruction of votes & tampering with recording equipment: Where ballots for a particular candidate are destroyed or miscounted. Similarly, some voting computers have been shown to be open to election fraud, by changing their counting mechanisms.
Misinformation: Presenting false information about the process of voting or the issues of an election.
Misleading (confusing) ballot language: Presenting confusing or misleading ballot papers designed to lead voters into voting for a particular choice or candidate. Like vote “yes” to vote “no” on “not legalizing marriage equality.”
Mis-recording of votes: The process of incorrectly counting votes or attributing a vote incorrectly.
Misuse of proxy votes: Tampering or misrepresentation in the process of proxy voting. Differs from voter impersonation in that it is done with the voter's knowledge.
Tampering with electronic voting machine: Just as it sounds, the process of tampering with an electronic voting machine in anyway before or after the voting process.
Voter suppression: Suppressing eligible voters by any legal or illegal means in local, state or federal elections.
Call to Action:
Learn about the types of voter fraud so you can help to fight against them to protect your vote in the next election.
Get your free copy of 8 Things You Can Do Now to Help STOP Voter Fraud.
Volunteer to become a poll watcher or election judge.
Additional Links:
Types of Voter and Electoral Fraud
Voter Fraud Types and Election Integrity
Voter Fraud Is Real. Here’s The Proof
Truth, Accuracy and Election Fraud
Judicial Watch Steps Up to Clean Voter Rolls, 7:31
Additional Reading:
How to Rig an Election by Nic Cheeseman & Brian Klaas
Our Broken Elections: How The Left Changed the Way You Vote, by John Fund & Hans Von Spakovsky