The New Hampshire attorney general’s office is reviewing a purported voter fraud sting carried out by a conservative advocacy group on Tuesday during the Republican presidential primary election.
http://liarcatchers.com/fraud_investigation.html
Governor John Lynch confirmed in a statement yesterday that authorities have launched the review. He also blasted the Washington-based group, Project Veritas, for its conduct.
“Time and again, New Hampshire election officials have no evidence of voter fraud, and our elections are clean elections,’’ Lynch said. “It’s outrageous that these out-of-staters invaded our polling places and misrepresented themselves in an attempt to push a political agenda.’’
James O’Keefe, the group’s founder, fired back in a phone interview.
“We think it’s disingenuous for people to be attacking us on this front,’’ he said. “We’re exposing and whistle-blowing the potential for massive fraud here.’’
On its website, Project Veritas has posted video of what appear to be poll workers at different stations handing out ballots to group members, who identified themselves as registered voters in the state, even though the voters that were named have died.
The group members are heard repeatedly offering to present identification to poll workers, who are heard saying several times that ID is not necessary.
O’Keefe said that his members did not commit fraud because they did not actually cast votes and made efforts to return the ballots as soon as they were handed them. He said three members went to about a dozen polling stations, mostly in Manchester and Nashua.
O’Keefe said the group will continue looking into the potential for fraud in other states during the election season. He declined to say which states the group may target next or what their tactics might be.
New Hampshire Assistant Attorney General Richard W. Head said in an e-mail that authorities learned of the group’s actions on Tuesday and immediately began their review.
He declined to provide details of the investigation because it is ongoing.
New Hampshire does not require voters to present a valid ID at the polls, and Lynch vetoed a bill in June that would have required it, arguing that such a law could have kept some, such as the elderly and students, from voting.
However, Lynch remains open to signing some type of voter ID law in the future, as long as it protects voter rights, his spokesman said. Massachusetts does not require identification from voters either.
Several states have recently enacted such laws, which have been assailed by critics as a voter suppression tool and lauded by supporters as a way of ensuring integrity in elections.
