S.C. State Elections Commission officials are requesting a probe into the fraudulent use of the names of 900 dead people in recent state elections.
State Election Commission Chairman John Hudgens and Executive Director Marci Andino announced their support of the call for an investigation into possible voter fraud in state elections on Thursday.
In a statement released Wednesday, S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson reported the discovery of evidence that was uncovered by Department of Motor Vehicles Director Kevin Shwedo during a recent review of data related to the state's controversial new voter ID law.
“Director Shwedo’s research has revealed evidence that over nine hundred deceased people appear to have ‘voted’ in recent elections in South Carolina,” Wilson said in a statement released Wednesday. “This is an alarming number, and clearly necessitates an investigation into potential criminal activity."
Wilson has requested S.C. State Law Enforcement Division Chief Mark Keel to review Shwedo's findings.
“At the core of the State Election Commission’s mission is ensuring every eligible citizen has the opportunity to participate in fair and impartial elections and have the assurance that their vote will count,” Andino said. “Recent claims that more than 900 votes were cast in the name of dead people are very concerning."
Andino said if the findings are true it would mean the state's election process has been compromised.
"It would mean every person’s legal vote has been diluted by illegal ones. Such a reality would strike a blow to the public’s confidence in the election process in S.C,” Andino said.
In his letter to Chief Keel, Wilson writes, “No right is more precious than the right to vote and no process is more important in terms of integrity than the election process. Voter fraud cannot be tolerated. Therefore, I respectfully request that SLED conduct a preliminary inquiry into these voting irregularities.”
Read the letter: http://www.scag.gov/pdf/voting.pdf
The S.C. voter ID law was passed in 2011, and requires voters to show specific types of photo identification. The law was rejected by the U.S. Justice Department on the grounds that it was discriminatory against minorities and the poor.
Wilson's office is in the process of appealing the decision and state lawmakers said they are ready to file a lawsuit against the Justice Department.
COMMENT said to myself: self, why are you involved in a "no there" discussion...and; self rationalized: it's because i hate to see the koch bros and their ilk "buy" america when they dont give a damn about the middle class, po folks and the least... it's not really about tit/tat discussions on PATCH with fellow americans...
if not it should be (his or election official's) and should be done prior to any election and registration rolls should purged before any election... closing the barn door after the pony is out, putting on a show is gross negligence by election officials...and they should be fired...
agree. If you have time and inclination, would you pls describe what poll workers/election officials do to prevent individual voter fraud at the ballot box... reasons for the voter ID law are as transparent as asking "how many beans are in a jar", as a jim crow literacy test to qualify to vote...but; none so blind as those who see the law through koch bros' prescription lens.
“Picture ID sounds simple to those who live where having a drivers' license is commonplace, but not so simple if you live in a center city and don't need one (or don't have a car anyway).” I just want to make sure you know we are talking about South Carolina here. I have spent a fair amount of time in the downtown areas of Greenville, Columbia, and Charleston and can report these are not exactly urban metropolises. Also a drivers license is not required, just a state issued photo ID.
If these good folks would like to improve their situation in life then maybe having a valid state issued photo ID might be a positive step in that direction. Why is it that so many people who advocate for the disadvantaged prefer supporting things that make being disadvantaged easier instead of making it easier to not be disadvantaged? In this case, make sure they don’t need a photo ID card to vote instead of helping them get a photo ID card, which is also useful for a lot of other things. This just does not make sense to me.
what doesn't make sense is the voter ID law: a law that was not needed in "recent history"; a law that doesn't correct/address the real election fraud issues...eg; electronic voting machines, incompetent and crooked election officials. tho painfully obvious (BO voter suppression is the law's purpose), no pro voter ID person has explained the law's connection to the koch bros (ALEX)...has explained why the law was not needed until the kochs said it was... so very sad the BO haters sold (actually gave) their soul to the koch bros...who dont give a damn about them...who cynically pander to the racist element and use them to promote their corporate interests...the politicians did sell their people out for a koch contribution. re: "...prefer supporting things that make being disadvantaged easier instead of making it easier to not be disadvantaged" opposing racism and the koch bros does make it easier to "not be disadvantaged"...educating folks re the goals of the greedy bastards does make it easier to "not be disadvantaged."
I still did not see an answer to my question. I asked: “why the people that would be suppressed by a voter ID law are unable to accept a free ride to the DMV and get an ID card. You said: “what doesn't make sense is the voter ID law...” and then went on some rant about BO haters, koch bros, and racism. So let me assume for a moment that your real concern is about people being unable to vote because getting a photo ID is too high of barrier for them to overcome. Would you be willing to support the voter ID law if it included all necessary aid to help any citizen that needed a photo ID to get one? As I said in another thread, I have absolutely no objection with helping our citizens obtain proper state ID. I think this would be a great thing, since having a valid state issued photo ID could also potentially help them when seeking employment, conducting business or banking transactions, etc. It seems to me this would be a win-win solution for people on both sides of this debate. Also, there would be the positive side effect of helping people that are at the center of the debate.
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/01/james-okeefe-video-purports-to-show-ease-of-voter-fraud-in-n-h-primary/
does anyone have proof of living impersonating dead...the SC election commission doesn't...please inform commission and demand the prosecution of those you know... the only way for dead folk (living imposters) can vote is election officials have not (based on death certificates) purged the registration roster...and; voter ID law does nothing to enforce election officials to do their job. it JUST DOES NOT make sense to fix something that is NOT broken...not common (any) sense...its GOP/koch-bro politics to improve very slim chances to make BO a one term pres...the GOP JOB #1. re: Proof of voter fraud in NH... actually proof of p-poor job by election officials and polling workers...dead folks should not be on a list of registered voters at the ballot box.
http://www.scvotes.org/files/VR_Blank_Form.pdf http://www.scdhhs.gov/openpublic/ResourceLibrary/forms.asp
SDR ref link say: "...a copy of a current valid photo ID...'OR' a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, etc...Voters who are age 65 and over, voters with disabilities, etc ... are exempt from this requirement...Social Security Number is required...is used for internal purposes only and eliminates multiple registrations by a single individual." http://www.scvotes.org/files/VR_Blank_Form.pdf
First, you keep asking for proof. I do not know if there is proof or not but I do know there is an obvious risk. So why not implement a common sense solution to reduce that risk? Would you be happy if your bank waited until there was proof someone had stolen money from your account before they implemented a policy requiring photo IDs to withdraw funds? Come on, if you can put aside the politics and desire to scream racism for a moment you have to see this is just basic common sense. If people need assistance getting the required IDs then by all means let’s provide that assistance. “the only way for dead folk (living imposters) can vote is election officials have not (based on death certificates) purged the registration roster...and; voter ID law does nothing to enforce election officials to do their job.” In this case state issued photo ID is a backup safeguard if the names of the dead folks are still on the roster.
the answer: the least are suppressed/opressed by laws based on fiction...NOT fact. re: So let me assume for a moment that your real concern..." my real concern is people (our country) being bought by greedy bastards like the kocKs...who pander to racism...use good people to benefit kocK interest. jimw avoids the real issue with the distraction of ease or unease of getting an ID...cease being hypocrites and admit the painfully obvious: The law does nothing to correct a condition which does NOT exist. (where's the beef) kocKs-etals know that if they can shave off even 1-2% of turnouts, it'll be enough to tip the scales in race after race. [CLIPs] "These laws are a major attack on voting rights. Nationwide, 21 million eligible voters lack the kinds of photo ID required by these laws. And especially if you're elderly, poor, or a student, it's not easy to jump through the hoops required by these laws. "Joy Lieberman of Missouri. She's 80 years old and has been voting for 60 years. But now she won't be able to vote because her birth certificate does not list her middle name. Or Larry Butler, who was born in 1926 in South Carolina, when birth certificates often were not issued to black Americans. Now, it would cost Mr. Butler $150 to get the documents required by South Carolina's voter suppression law.
and how do you know...and how did ya'll NOT know before (in recent history) til' the kocKs told ya'll re: this is just basic common sense. nonsense... i have no desire to scream "racism" except where it exist...it is unbelievable intelligent people do not see it...
Assuming the dead person match to driver's license was done by social security number (not birthdate, which will produce duplicates that are actually different people), the most common reason for this is inaccuracies in voter history data. I recently examined voter history databases for an election with 180,000 votes, and found 5,000 inaccurate data entries. In other words, people who didn't vote were reported as voting, and people who did vote were reported as not voting. Moving on to actual cases of proven fraud voting for dead people, this is done by poll workers and others with inside access. Voter ID has no effect on poll worker or election worker fraud, because they don't card themselves while they stuff the ballot box.
the well-handled are clueless (for a start should read 'nickled and dimed'), have no idea how po folks live/survive from paycheck to paycheck...there are exceptions eg, FDR, JFK, BO, maybe W. i understand most rich (well-handled) folks really dont care about the least...what i dont understand is why they pretend otherwise...why they are such hypocrites...just admit they are greedy bastards...and/but; what i will never understand are patronized (by rich folks) middle class, po folks who think rich folks do care... of course my comments are over the top hyperbole...but are based on the way good people vote...eg, no new taxes; cut funding to programs needed by the least; give tax breaks to the rich and corporations...