Thread: FL: NBC2 Investigates: Voter fraud

NBC2 Investigates: Voter fraud
Two elections supervisors are taking action after an NBC2 investigation uncovers flawed record keeping and human error allowing people who are not citizens of the United States to vote.

No one knows how widespread this problem is, because county election supervisors have no way to track non-citizens who live here.

So NBC2 did something election officials never thought to do, and found them on our own.

"I vote every year," Hinako Dennett told NBC2.

The Cape Coral resident is not a US citizen, yet she's registered to vote.

NBC2 found Dennett after reviewing her jury excusal form. She told the Clerk of Court she couldn't serve as a juror because she wasn't a U.S. citizen.

We found her name, and nearly a hundred others like her, in the database of Florida registered voters.

Naples resident Yvonne Wigglesworth is also a not a citizen, but is registered to vote. She claims she doesn't know how she got registered.

"I have no idea. I mean, how am I supposed to know."

Records show Wigglesworth voted six times in elections dating back eleven years.

"I know you cannot vote before you become a citizen, so I never tried to do anything like that," Samuel Lincoln said.

He isn't a U.S. citizen either, but the Jamaican national says he doesn't know how he ended up registered to vote.

"It's their mistake, not mine," said Lincoln.

We obtained a copy of his 2007 voter registration application. It's clearly shows he marked U.S. citizen.

"This is under oath, that document, they are attesting that it is true and by falsifying, it's a third degree felony," said Tim Durham, Collier County's chief elections supervisor.

County supervisors of elections tell me they have no way to verify citizenship. Under the 1992 Motor Voter Law, they're not required to ask for proof.

"We have no policing authority. We don't have any way of bouncing that information off any other database that would give us that information," said Lee County Supervisor of Elections Sharon Harrington.

NBC2: Does that need to change??
Harrington: "I think it needs to be looked at."

Until that happens, the only way supervisors of elections can investigate voter fraud is if they get a tip.

So that's what our list became. After showing them the nearly 100 names we compiled, both county election offices sent letters to each voter, asking them verify citizenship.

"It could be very serious. It could change the whole complexion of an election," said Harrington.
It's important we don't know we know if these folks are here illegal or not, just they are potentially not U.S. citizens who registered to vote.

Voters who received letters have 30 days to show proof of citizenship, or they'll be taken off the registration rolls.

Based on our investigation, both election offices say they'll now request a copy of every jury excusal form where residents say they can't serve because they're not a citizen.

Part 1 NBC2 Investigates: Voter fraud - NBC-2.com WBBH News for Fort Myers, Cape Coral & Naples, Florida

LEE COUNTY -
Poor record keeping is what's leading to potential fraud in the elections system. And election supervisors say registering non-citizens will continue until they get more help.

Officials we spoke to say non U.S. citizens are voting in Lee and Collier counties.

"If there is a change by one vote and somebody's voted that really has no right to be voting," said Lee County Supervisor of Elections Sharon Harrington.

Nearly 100 registered are now under investigation for possible voter fraud.

"It could change the whole complexion of an election," Harrington said.

We found those 100 people after reviewing jury excusal forms. We compared the names of those who said they couldn't serve because they were not U.S. citizens to those listed on Florida's voter registration rolls.

"I was surprised that there were quite that many," Harrington said.

So how is this happening?

In some cases, human error got them on the voter rolls.

We found one Naples resident, who clearly marked she was not a U.S. citizen, but was registered anyway.

But the NBC2 Investigators also found many of those registered were signed up while at the Tax Collector's Office getting a drivers license.

We asked Susan Allen, the Lee County Tax Collector's Office Customer Service Director, if the system was just based on trust and she answered, "Definitely.

Up until two years ago, no one asked for proof of citizenship.

Allen: You're either giving us the birth certificate, a us passport or your naturalization document.

NBC2: So, it's a lot harder now to lie?

Allen: Definitely.

It may be harder now. But since you only have to renew your license every eight years, it'll take another six to weed out all the non-citizens.

Harrington says what we really need is a national verification system.

"We don't have any investigative powers or anyway to check this information. As we're checking them into our system, it would be nice to have that," she said.

We took that concern to Florida U.S. Senator Bill Nelson.

"So, there is the opportunity to verify, through the social security number when they register and that should be a way of doing it," he said.

But Harrington says that's not good enough because voters can register without a social security number - leaving the potential for abuse for years to come.

Based on our investigation, both election offices say they'll now request copies of every jury excusal form where residents say they can't serve because they're not a citizen.

Both the Lee and Collier supervisors of elections sent letters to the people we found asking them to verify citizenship.

We should have an update on that in a few weeks.

While we only looked at Southwest Florida two largest counties, this absolutely affects other counties in the state.

And we're told the state is looking into implementing a similar policy to compare jury excusal forms with voter rolls at all supervisor of elections offices.

The video are a must watch!!!!

Part 2 NBC2 Investigates: Voter Fraud - Part 2 - NBC-2.com WBBH News for Fort Myers, Cape Coral & Naples, Florida

Both the Lee and Collier supervisors of elections sent letters to the people we found asking them to verify citizenship.

AND? What law will require anyone of the purgurors to write back and admit they committed a felony? Some of these voters particpated in elections for eleven years. There must be retribution.

This happens frequently in my town, jury summons being returned due to non-citizenship. And, yes, they vote.

Voters who received letters have 30 days to show proof of citizenship, or they'll be taken off the registration rolls.

The article states it's a felony to lie on the registration form. How about deporting these people instead of a slap on the hand.

As long as an IA can simply check yes to the question "Are you a citizen of the USA?" on a voter registration form this will go on.

I know of no locality in the USA that verifies a voter registration form to be truthful.

Then when anyone suggests voter fraud it's always stated "There is no evidence of such."

We need V-verify to go along with E-verify, it's that simple.

Voter Fraud Investigation: Agencies take action



Feb 08, 2012 4:40 PM CST

VIDEO:
http://www.nbc-2.com/story/16772858/...clipId=6722201


Collier County Supervisor of Elections has turned over potential evidence of voter fraud to law enforcement. It's an update to an NBC2 investigation that found non-citizens voting in Florida Elections.


While the Naples voter admitted to us she is not a U.S. Citizen, election records show she voted six times in the past eleven years.

Less than a week after our story aired, the elections supervisor sent a letter to the sheriff's office asking them "to investigate and prosecute."

The NBC2 investigators found the voter after examining jury excusal forms where a person said they couldn't serve because they were not U.S. Citizens. We took those names and found nearly a hundred of those people in the database of Florida registered voters.

It's a crime to lie on voter registration applications.

"This is under oath, that document, they are attesting that it is true and by falsifying, it's a third degree felony," said Tim Durham, Collier County's deputy chief election supervisor.

Our investigation revealed county supervisors of elections have no way to verify citizenship and are not required to ask for proof.

Our method got the attention of Florida's secretary of state. Its office sent us a letter saying, "...we will be exploring how many of the state's clerks of court and supervisors of elections could work together to verify that persons excused from jury duty, because they are non-citizens, are not illegally registered to vote."

The Collier county election's office expects to turn over more names to law enforcement. Voter fraud carries a $5,000 fine and up to five years in prison.

NBC2