TO THE EDITOR:
Let’s be very clear about who is behind the so-called voter fraud study as noted in a story in the April 8 Daily Tar Heel.
This is the work of long-time Republican political operative and controversial Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach. His Interstate Voter Registration Crosscheck Program is offered as a free service to states and is utilized almost exclusively by states led by Republican lawmakers. A participating state sends its voter file to Kobach’s office, which compares it against the records from the other states. But, Kobach’s office has produced little to no evidence that voter fraud is actually occurring. Only 14 cases out of millions of voter records analyzed were “referred for prosecution,” and there is no confirmation that any charges actually occurred, much less a voter convicted.
As the Institute for Southern Studies notes, “Across the country, the pattern is the same: A (usually Republican-led) state joins Kobach’s program, runs a check and announces large numbers of potential voting irregularities. But when it comes to proving actual fraud, the claims are quickly undermined.” The ACLU has documents indicating that North Carolina signed up as one of six “new states” that would be using Crosscheck in 2014.
This is nothing more than sensationalism designed to grab the media and public’s attention, and is absolutely without substance or value. Our future journalists at the DTH should take note.
Debra Beller
Chapel Hill, N.C.
