Politics & Government
Rep. Skillicorn Says Double Voting Must Be Prosecuted
Rep. Allen Skillicorn is encouraging State's Attorney's offices across Illinois to pursue those who vote more than once in an election.
SPRINGFIELD – State Representative Allen Skillicorn (R-East Dundee) is encouraging State’s Attorney’s offices across Illinois to protect voter integrity and pursue those who vote more than once in an election.
According to the Illinois State Board of Elections (ISBE), in the 2016 General Election, over a thousand records were identified with potential issues. Of those, almost 20% appeared to be double voting. 60% of the double voting cases were referred to the ISBE internal legal team with 40% being referred to local law enforcement. In order to determine whether cases are pending against violators, Skillicorn’s office issued a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for the names of the alleged double voters, however the FOIA was denied.
“The State Board of Elections and State’s Attorney’s must prosecute those who violate our voting laws,” said Skillicorn. “Protecting our most sacred voting rights is long overdue and I have introduced two bills to do so.”
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The first bill Skillicorn introduced, House Bill 2632, enhances penalties for dual voting and prohibits a person from knowingly maintaining more than one registration to vote. It also provides that a violation involving multiple registrations within the State is a Class A misdemeanor, and further, that a violation involving multiple registrations in this State and another state is a Class 4 felony. The second bill, House Bill 2633, requires the State Board of Elections to enter into an agreement with the Interstate Voter Registration Crosscheck Program to maintain the integrity of voter registration rolls.
“I will continue to pursue bolstering the integrity of our voting system and the prosecution of those who violate this most precious right in Illinois,” said Skillicorn. “Double voting must not be treated as something deserving of only a slap on the wrist. State’s Attorney’s need to step up and do their job and the ISBE needs to make these violations a priority.”
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ISBE 2016 Potential Double Vote information can be found here.
