# How big a problem is "voting fraud" in the U.S.? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [May 7, 2005, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-big-a-problem-is-voting-fraud-in-the-u-s/302825 "2005-05-07T16:32:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-big-a-problem-is-voting-fraud-in-the-u-s/302825/41 "2005-05-10T17:54:18Z")
BrainGlutton: > [@](#): > > The difference is in level of motivation… The benefits don’t match the risks. Not for the individual voter, no. But for the political organizers and campaigners, it certainly does. If, say, the Illinois Republican Party wanted to ship a few dozen busloads of solidly Republican Hoosiers over the state line to nab some extra electoral votes in a presidential election this would make such chicanery harder to weed out. Or taking voters fom district to district to vote multiple times. Or shift voters whose residency is in an uncontested Congressional district to a place where the race is closer and they could be of more use to the party. Heck, here’s an even worse scenario - if the local elections commissioner is “extra friendly” to one party or another, this makes it easier for him (or her) to allow/disallow suspect votes. This is an invitation for voter fraud, and whether or not it was prevalent before the invitation does not change the fact that it’s an invitation. ---
**Author:** ![NurseCarmen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5daacb/32.png) [@NurseCarmen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NurseCarmen)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-big-a-problem-is-voting-fraud-in-the-u-s/302825/42 "2005-05-10T18:56:36Z")
> [@cmkeller](#): > > If, say, the Illinois Republican Party wanted to ship a few dozen busloads of solidly Republican Hoosiers over the state line to nab some extra electoral votes in a presidential election this would make such chicanery harder to weed out. Or taking voters from district to district to vote multiple times The problem with your line of theory is that you are posing organized voter fraud as the biggest threat. But such organized fraud would be nearly impossible to keep a secret. If any such fraud had occured in the past couple elections, we would have heard of it by now and charges would have been filed. Have we heard of any cases? Are there any charges? From what I’ve seen, the answer is no. The cases we _have_ heard of involve individuals taking it upon themselves to perpetuate the fraud. > [@](#): > > if the local elections commissioner is “extra friendly” to one party or another, this makes it easier for him (or her) to allow/disallow suspect votes. Representatives from each party would be in attendance (As is the case for every state that allows on-site registration that I know of) which would reduce the possibility for this kind of fraud. And if such fraud were to occur, you can bet dollars to donuts that it would see the full light of a court house. So that built in protection deflects that concern. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-big-a-problem-is-voting-fraud-in-the-u-s/302825/43 "2005-05-10T19:18:48Z")
> [@Captain Amazing](#): > > Regarding Texas, read either Dallek or Caro’s biographies of LBJ for an account of the 1948 Texas Senate primary between him and Coke Stephenson. They both have accounts of the rather creative tactics both sides used to get the nomination, as well as the legal maneuverings afterwards. Or just look up George Parr. As for Cook County, do you really need cites about the actions of the Daley machine from the 1950s-70s? Check out either Royko’s “Boss” or, more recently, Cohen’s “American Pharoah”. I thought you were talking about more recent instances. The 1970s are, like, forever ago. I can’t see anybody getting away with using the “dead vote” nowadays. Too easy to catch. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-big-a-problem-is-voting-fraud-in-the-u-s/302825/44 "2005-05-10T20:24:10Z")
Voter fraud could be overcome very easily. The technology is there to track fingerprints. Every voter, upon registration, will have to provide a fingerprint which is stored with the voter record. Each polling place would have a fingerprint scanner. All the voter has to do is show up at the polls and place their finger in the scanner. Voila. Yes, it will cost some $$ to do it. Is it worth it? I think so. ---
**Author:** ![NurseCarmen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5daacb/32.png) [@NurseCarmen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NurseCarmen)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-big-a-problem-is-voting-fraud-in-the-u-s/302825/45 "2005-05-10T20:43:20Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > Voter fraud could be overcome very easily. The technology is there to track fingerprints. Every voter, upon registration, will have to provide a fingerprint which is stored with the voter record. Until that first court case where the police are attempting to open the voter record to get finger prints… I don’t see that method working in the US. The majority of voter fraud could be eliminated simply by improvements in databases and technology. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-big-a-problem-is-voting-fraud-in-the-u-s/302825/46 "2005-05-11T18:05:04Z")
FWI, this was just in the paper today, if you need more recent evidence of the dead voting: [http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050511/ap\_on\_re\_us/voter\_fraud\_fallout\_1](http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050511/ap_on_re_us/voter_fraud_fallout_1) ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-big-a-problem-is-voting-fraud-in-the-u-s/302825/47 "2005-05-11T21:14:53Z")
> [@Captain Amazing](#): > > FWI, this was just in the paper today, if you need more recent evidence of the dead voting: > > [http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050511/ap\_on\_re\_us/voter\_fraud\_fallout\_1](http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050511/ap_on_re_us/voter_fraud_fallout_1) Hmmm . . . I guess I should be immune to shocks by now . . . However – from the linked article: > [@](#): > > “There is not the evidence of an overriding conspiracy in all of this,” U.S. Attorney Steven Biskupic said. > > The task force, however, did find evidence of sloppy record-keeping and poor training for poll workers, who were overwhelmed by thousands of absentee ballots. Biskupic said the faulty records will make it tough to prosecute many of the crimes. Note that this is exactly the kind of problem that the Count Every Vote Act is intended to **correct:** > [@](#): > > 1. Set minimum standards for the number of voting systems and poll workers at each precinct, and require that every precinct have at least one machine that can provide audio and pictorial verification and that is accessible to language minority voters; ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-big-a-problem-is-voting-fraud-in-the-u-s/302825/48 "2005-05-11T21:25:28Z")
Yeah, but that’s not one of the bolded parts of the bill that some people have a problem with. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-big-a-problem-is-voting-fraud-in-the-u-s/302825.md?page=2)