Donald Trump on Monday continued a potentially dangerous drumbeat — questioning the integrity of the American election system.
Of course there is large scale voter fraud happening on and before election day. Why do Republican leaders deny what is going on? So naive!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 17, 2016
These warnings are not new and not supported by evidence; they defy numerous studies that have found that voter fraud is minimal.
They also invite a question: If the election is rigged, who is doing the rigging?
Presidential elections are conducted on a state-by-state basis, not nationally. And in most of the states seen as presidential battlegrounds, the chief elections officers are Republicans — most directly accountable to their state’s voters.
- In Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Ohio and Utah, the chief elections officer of the state is a Republican, elected by voters of the state. Most are secretary of state; Utah’s lieutenant governor oversees elections there.
- In Florida, the secretary of state is appointed by the state’s Republican governor, Rick Scott — a Trump supporter.
- In North Carolina, the state board of elections has five members, appointed by the governor — currently a Republican. Its current chairman and three out of five members are Republicans.
There are states with some measure of Democratic control over the process. - In Minnesota and Missouri, the chief elections officer is a Democrat elected by the voters of the state.
- Pennsylvania’s secretary of state was appointed by the state’s Democratic governor.
- New Hampshire’s longtime secretary of state was once a Democrat, but was reelected to his post by the Republican-led state legislature.
- Virginia’s Democratic governor, Terry McAuliffe — a longtime Clinton ally — appointed each member of that state’s three-person elections board.
The Clinton campaign has strongly denounced Trump’s rhetoric.
“Campaigns should be hard-fought and elections hard-won, but what is fundamental about the American electoral system is that it is free, fair and open to the people. Participation in the system — and particularly voting — should be encouraged, not dismissed or undermined because a candidate is afraid he’s going to lose,” campaign manager Robby Mook said in a statement Saturday.
Michael A. Memoli I LA Times
