In New Mexico, it’s almost impossible to prove voter fraud.  No proof of citizenship is required to register to vote, and no voter ID is required for in-person voting.  For absentee voting, no photo ID is required to obtain an absentee ballot, no copy of a photo ID need be included with the returned absentee ballot, and there is no signature verification of the signature on the returned inner envelope.

Why does New Mexico have such slipshod laws?  You can thank the Democrat-controlled state Legislature that has had single-party rule for decades.  The last time Republicans held a majority if both houses of the N.M. Legislature at the same time was 1930.  To state the obvious, if it’s almost impossible to prove voter fraud, it’s almost impossible to prove the accuracy of vote totals in close elections.

I was curious if there are any other states where it is also nearly impossible to prove voter fraud.  Here are the results.

VOTER REGISTRATION

It’s illegal for non-citizens to vote in federal elections.  One would therefore conclude that proof of U.S. citizenship would be a mandatory voting requirement for all federal elections — but it is not.  Only 8 states require proof of citizenship in some form.  One of those states, Ohio, requires proof of citizenship only if registering to vote at a DMV facility.  These 8 states have faced ferocious legal opposition, and the proof of citizenship requirement has been blocked or not implemented in the majority.

I was surprised to learn that North Dakota has no voter registration.  For the other 41 states and the District of Columbia, all that is required is a declaration that the applicant is a U.S. citizen.

States Requiring/Not Requiring Proof of Citizenship (Requiring +1)

Voter ID Requirements for In-Person Voting

The gold standard for in-person voting is a government-issued photo ID.  Only 24 states require a photo ID to vote.  Another 12 states accept non-photo ID proof of identity.  That leaves 14 states and the District of Columbia that have no requirement for any identification.  Among the 15, 12 are deep blue states.  Only 3 of the 15 still have competitive elections. Those 3 are Nevada, Maine, and Pennsylvania.

States that Do/Do Not Require Voter ID (Do Not Require -1)

Ballot Collection, AKA Ballot-Harvesting

Ballot-harvesting is based on an election law that permits someone other than the voter to return the voter’s ballot.  It presents an opportunity for all kinds of voter fraud and should probably be eliminated.  It is specifically permitted in 36 states.  In the remaining 14 states and the District of Columbia, it is not specifically mentioned in the voting law (8 states + D.C.), specifies that only the voter can return his own ballot (4 states), or specifies that the absentee ballot can be returned only by mail (2 states).

States that Do/Do Not Permit Ballot-Harvesting (Not Permitting +1)

Absentee Voting

The single greatest threat to the integrity of American elections is its vulnerability to fraud with absentee voting.  In November and December of 2023, the Heartland Institute and Rasmussen Reports conducted a landmark survey of voters that found that one in four mail-in ballots could have been cast illegally in the 2020 presidential election.  The survey also found the following:

• 17% of mail-in voters admitted that in 2020, they voted in a state where they were “no longer a permanent resident.”
• 21% of mail-in voters admitted that they filled out a ballot for a friend or family member.
• 17% of mail-in voters said they signed a ballot for a friend or family member.
• 8% of likely voters say they were offered “pay” or a “reward” for voting in 2000.

Auto Mail-In Ballot Systems/Request Required Mail-In Ballot Systems

In a special category of jurisdictions that are reckless with their mail-in ballots, there are 8 standouts: California, Colorado, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington.  Each automatically sends ballots to all registered voters.  Six of the eight jurisdictions are deep blue.  For the other 43 states, at least the voters have to go to the trouble of asking for an absentee ballot.

Auto Mail-In Ballot Systems/Request Required Mail-In Ballot Systems (Auto -1)

Absentee Ballot ID Requirements

To obtain an absentee ballot, 36 states require some form of voter ID.  Fifteen of the states require a photo ID in some circumstances, and 20 require some other proof such as a Social Security number or voter ID number.  That leaves 14 states and the District of Columbia that have no voter ID requirement to obtain an absentee ballot.  Among these 15 jurisdictions, only Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Maine still have competitive elections.  The other 12 jurisdictions are all deep blue.

ID Required/No ID Required (No ID -1)

Absentee Ballot Signature Verification

Considering the high percentage of fraudulent absentee ballots shown in the Heartland/Rasmussen polling results, you would think that signature verification of the absentee ballot would be absolutely necessary.  You would be wrong.  Eighteen states and the District of Columbia have no signature verification of absentee ballots.

Signature Verified/Not Verified (Not Verified -1)

Cumulative Totals of the 5 Graphs

Deep blue New Mexico, where it is almost impossible to prove voter fraud, came in with a minus 3 score.  All the other jurisdictions with minus 3 scores are also deep blue states, with the exception of Nevada.  I think it is safe to assume that proving voter fraud in all the minus 3 states is nearly impossible.

At the other end of the spectrum, all the plus 3 states are bedrock red, with the surprising exception of little Rhode Island.  Also surprising is the minus 1 scores for red states Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Utah.

PS: How do U.S. Voter ID and Voting by Mail Compare to Other Countries?

It’s beyond the scope of this article to compare U.S. voting laws to other countries other than to say that European voting laws are much more restrictive than those in the U.S.  As of several years ago, all countries in Europe, other than the U.K., required government-issued photo IDs to vote in person.  European rules are also much more restrictive regarding mail-in voting.  It’s not permitted at all in some countries; in others, only citizens living outside the country can vote absentee; and in nearly all cases, you have to show up in person with a government-issued photo ID (usually a passport) to pick up the absentee ballot.

Image: cagdesign via Pixabay, Pixabay License.