Ohio Republicans to Observe Ohio`s Voting Process in Effort to Prevent Voter Fraud

Sunday, October 24, 2004

The Republican Party has four primary goals pertaining to election day activities:

• We will work to see that no voter is disenfranchised and every eligible voter has the chance to vote.
• We will work to see that all laws, regulations and rules are applied consistently. 
• We will work to see that Americans are provided with a transparent process and an accurate vote tabulation.
• We want this election to be decided by Ohio voters, not by partisan legal maneuvers and trial lawyers.

1) State law allows a representative from each party to monitor the voting process as a safeguard against election fraud.  We plan to take advantage of that opportunity in an effort to protect the vote of all legally registered Ohioans.  

2) Our goal in monitoring precincts on Election Day is simple: We want to ensure that voters are not disenfranchised and that fraud does not have an opportunity to present itself at the ballot box. If any effort is made to vote illegally, it will be challenged at the voting location.  These challenges serve as a safeguard against any individual who would attempt to manipulate the system by claiming a false identity or voting under an illegal registration.  Election fraud is a felony of the fifth degree.

3) Democrats will accuse us of attempting to intimidate voters or suppress the vote.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  We have invited them to join us in this effort to combat fraud, but they refused, choosing instead to send teams of lawyers to voting precincts on Election Day in an apparent effort to litigate the outcome and intimidate poll workers from challenging questionable registrations.  All the while, they have chosen to turn a blind eye to the illegal voter registration activities involving groups working on their behalf. 

3) Ohio has been the target of widespread, systematic voter registration fraud in at least 10 counties this year, and the potential for that fraud to present itself at the ballot box is very real.  These cases have been well documented by the media, and they exclusively involve Democratic front groups working to defeat President Bush.  Their actions have been sloppy at best and illegal at worst. 

• Groups such as ACORN, ACT, Project Vote and others have engaged in an unprecedented level of fraudulent activity being called the worst of its kind in state history.
• There are four counties in Ohio where voter registration has exceeded the number of voting-age people.
• In one case, a man who’s been dead for 20 years somehow managed to register this year in Lake County. 
• In another case, a Trumbull County woman was one of hundreds who found their signatures forged on registration forms after receiving voter cards they didn’t request. 
• Mahoning County is investigating 48 fraudulent cards. Many of them “appeared to be in the same handwriting.”
• Cuyahoga County is investigating registration cards submitted for people who don’t exist.
• Lake County is investigating reports that voters were duped into filling out absentee ballot requests by canvassers who told them they were signing for campaign materials.
• An entire neighborhood ironically will be out of town on Election Day.  They all requested absentee ballots.
• More than 800 fraudulent cards have been turned over to authorities in Summit County.
• Dozens of people have illegally registered to vote from empty lots.
• And perhaps the most egregious case so far in Ohio this year… a Defiance County man arrested for trading more than 100 fraudulent registration forms for crack cocaine.  In the process, he tried to register everyone from Mary Poppins to Michael Jordan.

5) Ohioans have a right to ensure that every vote is cast and counted according to the law, and we believe voters are supportive of all efforts to keep fraudulent activity away from the ballot box.

6) In addition to preventing fraud on Election Day, Republicans also want to protect the integrity of Ohio’s voting process by ensuring that all laws, rules and regulations are applied consistently and that no voter is disenfranchised.

7) The Republican Party will not tolerate any effort to disenfranchise voters.  This is why we’ve asked the Democrats to partner with us to observe the voting process.  We want voting operations to be as transparent and open as possible, and we have called on the Democratic Party to partner with us on Election Day activities to place bipartisan teams of observers in as many polling places as possible.  We believe this joint effort will prevent more problems from occurring and provide voters with more confidence in the process. 

8) Since the 2000 election, voting laws and regulations have changed affecting every voter in the country.  We have already seen evidence of confusion caused by these changes.  Republicans recognize the responsibility of political parties in the 2004 cycle and we believe that it is essential for our system of government to join with the Democratic Party and the Kerry campaign in ensuring a smooth and successful election.

9) The bottom line: We want Ohio voters to decide this election, not trial lawyers.  This is an effort to observe the process so that fraud does not threaten the integrity of our electoral system and fairness prevails on Election Day.

Questions:

What will challengers be looking for on Election Day?

They are simply looking to observe the process to ensure efficiency and to prevent fraud.  Significant reforms have been enacted at the state and federal levels in the aftermath of the 2000 election, and we want to make certain the system runs efficiently and consistently in every precinct so that no voter is disenfranchised.

Ohio has been the target of widespread, systematic voter registration fraud in this election, and if that fraud presents itself at the ballot box, we believe Ohioans would support any effort to challenge it.

Democrats say you’re just trying to intimidate voters or prolong the process by filing numerous challenges. Is that true?

No. To the contrary, this is an effort to protect every legal voter in the State of Ohio by keeping fraud away from the ballot box.  If there is a legitimate cause for concern about fraud or inequity at the ballot box, we believe it is our duty to protect the vote and ask the precinct judge to intervene.  Otherwise, Ohio’s voting process potentially could be manipulated by any illegal voter who claims a phony identity or fails to produce proper identification.

How many challengers will you be sending out and where will they be going?

We plan to have representatives in as many precincts as possible to observe the process and to ensure that voters are not disenfranchised by fraud. 

Will they be trained?

Yes.  Our Election Day observers will be trained in the details of election law and the voting process.  They will also be instructed on the importance of respect and decorum.