Groundbreaking National Voter Roll Study Reveals Alarming Trends as States Prepare to Vote by Mail

INDIANAPOLIS, Sept. 17, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- An independent, nationwide analysis of voter rolls in 42 states has identified thousands of probable deceased and duplicate registrants, as well as cases of individuals credited for voting more than once. The Public Interest Legal Foundation (PILF) has launched the Safeguarding America's Votes and Elections (SAVE) Database as an analysis tool to track voter roll deficiencies and potential problem areas across America. Announced today, the groundbreaking findings in their national report indicates that the SAVE Database raises serious concerns over the integrity of states' voter files as election officials anticipate a surge in mail-in voting this fall.

"The detailed information and analysis presented in this report makes it abundantly clear that states across America, including many that will determine control of the White House and Congress, are unprepared to accommodate a surge in mail-in voting this fall," PILF President and General Counsel J. Christian Adams said. "After standardizing registration lists in 42 states, Public Interest Legal Foundation's SAVE Database uncovered voter rolls saturated with alarming errors. Prior to publishing this report, PILF shared some findings with state election officials in hopes they would validate and act on helpful information. With only weeks to go before the start of early voting, we're hopeful this report will help spur broader public understanding about apparent problems which call into question the integrity of our election process."

SAVE revealed 349,773 apparently deceased registrants across 41 states' voter rolls, with New York, Texas, Michigan, Florida and California alone accounting for 51 percent of the total.

During the 2018 General Election, 37,889 likely duplicate registrants are apparently credited for casting two votes from the same address, and 34,000 registrants appear to have voted from non-residential addresses. Additionally, 6,718 registrants were apparently credited for voting after death. During the 2016 General Election, SAVE revealed that number was higher, with a total of 7,890 registrants apparently being credited for voting after death. 

After PILF collected data from 42 states and put it into a format where it could be studied, it was rigorously compared to commercial and government databases to increase confidence in the conclusions with particular emphasis on validating identities matched across state lines. Also included with the data were voter history fields, namely, data about when each registrant voted. The combination of state election data, commercial data, and federal sources such as the Social Security Death Index, provides researchers with perhaps the best platform ever constructed to analyze the health of the voter rolls and catalogue potential vulnerabilities.

The findings are a helpful starting point for state election officials to review the findings and make final determinations and take appropriate actions.

Notable Findings:

• 349,773: total number of potentially deceased registrants across 41 states
       1. Michigan, Florida, New York, Texas and California account for roughly 51% of national dead registrants.
• In 2016, 7,890 registrants were apparently credited for voting after death.
• In 2018, 6,718 registrants were credited for voting after death.
       1. North Carolina leads the U.S. in dead registrants credited for voting after death.
• 43,760 likely duplicate registrants appear to have cast second votes in 2016 from the same address.
• 37,889 likely duplicate registrants appear to have cast second votes in 2018 from the same address.
       1. Thousands of these apparent double votes were exclusively mail ballots
• 8,360 – Number of registrants apparently registered in 2 states and credited for voting in both states in 2018.
• 5,500 – Number of apparently duplicate registrants credited for voting twice in the same state from 2 different addresses in 2018.
• 34,000 – Number of registrants credited for voting from apparently non-residential addresses in 2018.

Download the full report here. If you are a member of the press and would like to interview or speak with J. Christian Adams and Logan Churchwell, please contact [email protected]. 

The Public Interest Legal Foundation is leading the nation in enforcing election integrity laws and the National Voter Registration Act, having brought cases in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Maryland, Florida, Mississippi, Texas, and Maine and filed amicus briefs in litigation across the nation.

Public Interest Legal Foundation (PILF) is a 501(c)(3) public interest law firm dedicated to election integrity. The Foundation exists to assist states and others to aid the cause of election integrity and fight against lawlessness in American elections. Drawing on numerous experts in the field, PILF seeks to protect the right to vote and preserve the Constitutional framework of American elections.

[email protected]

SOURCE Public Interest Legal Foundation