GOP Election Official Surprised by GOP Lawsuit Amid Cleanup Efforts

(Chuck Muth) –Matt Vasilogambros of Stateline.org published a report last week on voter integrity projects around the country that are focused on cleaning up the voter rolls.

Here’s an excerpt related to Nevada – and how the GOP is actually hurting clean-up efforts here…

* * *

When Scott Hoen ran to be Carson City, Nevada’s chief election official two years ago, he campaigned on “election integrity,” promising to make sure voter registration lists were accurate.

In the chaotic aftermath of the 2020 presidential election, he believed that too many of his fellow Republicans were convinced that there was widespread voter fraud. By keeping voter rolls current, Hoen thought he could restore voter trust in his county’s election system.

He won. And every day since he took office, he and his staff have tried to keep that focus, using data from all levels of government to remove voters who have moved or died from the active voter list.

Hoen was surprised, then, to be named in a lawsuit the Republican National Committee and the Nevada Republican Party filed last month against him, four other Nevada county clerks and the secretary of state.

The lawsuit alleges that five localities had “inordinately high” voter registration rates, and that the state is violating federal law by not having what are known as “clean” voter rolls.

Hoen said the lawsuit is “unfortunate” and “a distraction” in a pivotal election year. The state responded by saying the data Republicans used in the lawsuit are “highly flawed” and that the RNC’s analysis was like “comparing apples to orangutans.” …

“Who knows where they got their numbers. But they didn’t consult me or ask me, or no one’s talked to me about what we do with voter roll maintenance,” Hoen said of the lawsuit in an interview with Stateline. “We do everything we can, per the law, to keep our voter rolls as plain as possible.”

* * *

The Pigpen Project has gotten nothing but help and assistance from Mr. Hoen in our efforts to clean up the voter rolls. Whenever we’ve had questions or needed advice, he’s been there for us.

The GOP might try actually communicating with him and his office before flying off the handle.

In the meantime, here’s a quick update on the Pigpen Project’s efforts…

  • Since last September, volunteers have identified and reported 954 deceased voters using public obituaries as their source. Some had remained on the voter rolls for years after their death.  To date, 698 have been permanently removed.  The remaining 69 are still being reviewed for confirmation.
  • Our data research has also identified 7,078 registered Nevada voters who have submitted a change of address to the post office and have since re-registered in a different state in which we have access to voter registration information.

We’ve confirmed these voters have the same first, middle, and last names, as well as the same date/year of birth.  We’ve submitted a test list of those voters to the Nevada Secretary of State’s office to learn exactly what the processes and procedures are at the state level for requesting their removal.

I had a meeting with the SOS office on Tuesday.  They’re waiting on direction from the Attorney General’s office to make sure everything we’re doing complies with all the various state and federal laws related to these matters.

If we all can figure a way to process these reports without physically sending volunteers door-to-door, we’ll be able to remove thousands of ineligible voters at a time instead of dozens.

Keep your fingers crossed…and THANK YOU for your support of our efforts!

FAMOUS LAST WORDS

“If even one vote has been illegally cast or if the integrity of just one election official is compromised, it diminishes faith in the process.” – U.S. Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams

The Pigpen Project is a project of Citizen Outreach Foundation, an IRS-approved 501(c)(3) grassroots organization founded in 1992.  Donations are tax-deductible for federal income tax purposes.

Get Breaking News & Project Updates

RECENT POSTS