Great Lakes Wire

The firing of election workers in Fulton County Georgia and the charging of three with election fraud in Michigan show that election fraud is real and worthy of investigation and corrective measures, the Wall Street Journal’s editorial board wrote.

“In the eyes of many Democrats, any push to ensure ballot integrity amounts to voter suppression, while Georgia’s inquiry into Atlanta’s elections is nothing more than a prelude to a power grab,” the editorial board wrote. “Yet last week two Georgia election workers were fired for shredding voter registration forms, and this week three Michigan women were charged with fraud.”

In Georgia, “preliminary information indicates that the employees checked out batches of applications for processing, and they are alleged to have shredded some of the forms,” a Fulton County statement said, according to CBS News. Fellow employees reported the alleged actions to their supervisor, and the two were fired, CBS News said.

In Michigan, Attorney General Dana Nessel charged three Detroit area women with election fraud relating to absentee ballot applications and ballots cast in the 2020 general elections, The Detroit News reported.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland has filed legal action over the Georgia Legislature’s changes to its election laws, measures that including absentee voter ID requirements, Reuters reported. Earlier this month Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, vetoed four election bills. A grassroots movement led by Secure MI Vote has begun circulating petitions to circumvent the governor’s veto powers and get the measures enacted into law, ABC 12 reported. 

The Wall Street Journal wrote that Georgia’s ongoing “performance review of elections in Fulton County, which includes most of Atlanta, has largely been painted as a GOP plot to take over the handling of ballots in a blue area. Yes, the state’s new voting law theoretically gives it the power to suspend local election boards. But that’s only after a lengthy process, which must include a finding of malfeasance, gross negligence, or the like. And Fulton County has a long record of screwups.”

The newspaper also wrote that the Michigan cases were “instructive,” noting that the Michigan Attorney General’s Office said one woman “implemented a plan to obtain and control absentee ballots for legally incapacitated persons under her care by fraudulently submitting 26 absentee ballot applications.” Another woman, who worked at a nursing home, allegedly filled out absentee applications for residents without their knowledge, while forging their signatures.

“Democrats say voter fraud is mythical,” the Wall Street Journal wrote. “That isn’t true, and it’s reckless to pretend otherwise. On the other hand, President Donald Trump says fraud is everywhere and the hard evidence is always one more audit away. That isn’t true either, and it’s corrosive to public trust to say it. Between these two positions is plenty of middle ground, and that’s where state legislatures ought to be as they balance ballot access and security.”