Serving the Flathead Valley & Montana since 2006. A reality based independent journal of observation & analysis. © James Conner.
File this under it never hurts to be prepared, under deterring fraud, or under solutions to problems that either don’t exist or are so insignificant they’re not worth worrying about. I favor “solutions to problems that don’t exist…” but any or all categories are legitimate and apply. The choice is yours.
So what is the situation with voter fraud in Montana? The facts were provided by Montana Secretary of State Linda McCulloch in an oped in the Missoulian, Crying wolf about voter fraud in Montana:
As your secretary of state, and chief elections officer, I take every allegation of election fraud seriously. I launched the “The Fair Elections Center” early in my term so that every Montanan could easily report a potential state election law violation. Every allegation is documented, reviewed and, if warranted, passed on to the appropriate authorities.
The results are overwhelmingly clear. Voter fraud — votes knowingly cast by ineligible individuals — does not exist in Montana. Misleading Montana citizens by repeating inaccurate and unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud deflects resources that should be used to find real solutions to real problems.
Does not exist in Montana. That ought to be definitive, but freshman legislator Rep. Mark Noland (R-Bigfork) isn’t taking any chances. He’s asked for LC1652, which has the short but clear title of “Increase penalties for voter fraud.”
Come on, Rep. Noland. The only fraud associated with voters in Montana is the lies that politicians tell them. Go ahead, reread McCulloch’s oped. Next, ask Santa for Lorraine Minnite’s book, The Myth of Voter Fraud. Finally, start the New Year the right way by withdrawing this frivolous bill.