Missouri Secretary of State: Yes, voter fraud is a real threat

 

 

In Missouri, during a 2010 Democratic primary, one of our state representatives won his race by one vote. But as it was later discovered, three members of his family pled guilty to charges of vote fraud. Those three “insignificant” votes swung an entire election and denied his opponent a fair race. I ask photo voter ID critics to explain the insignificance of such a case.

The disappointing reality is that as long as we have elections, people will try to cheat. Yet, I believe in our election system and verifying voters are who they say they are is the simplest and most effective way to prevent vote fraud. More than 30 other states agree, as they have their own versions of voter ID laws.  

Few laws in the United States have endured as much political and legal scrutiny as voter ID laws. These statutes were drafted with extraordinary deference to opponents, containing numerous accommodations to ensure that no eligible registered voter is disenfranchised. In addition, they have been litigated in nearly every state where enacted, and time and again, these common sense photo voter ID laws have been upheld in both state and federal courts.

This past week, President Trump appointed a commission to investigate fraud and provide a national perspective on voting issues and election integrity. As a state election authority, I have been fighting to protect our state's elections from fraud. It is refreshing to finally have a federal administration that will partner with us on election integrity issues, not stand in the way of common sense reforms.

I commend the appointment of a voter integrity commission and look forward to its recommendations. And hopefully, the commission findings will finally inform Hillary Clinton that the will of the American people is the reason for her loss, not common sense voter ID laws.

 

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2017/05/20/missouri-secretary-state-yes-voter-fraud-is-real-threat.amp.html