Know the Facts: Stop Election Misinformation in Its Tracks
There has never been a more critical time to have accurate information about our elections! As we approach the 2024 Presidential Election, misinformation and disinformation are sowing division and distrust, suppressing voting, and undermining the entire electoral process.
Fight back against election misinformation by knowing and sharing the facts. The following information has been verified by LWVIL’s Mis/Disinformation Task Force.
Fact #1: Only US citizens can vote in elections.
Article III of the Illinois Constitution states who is eligible to vote.
Illinois Voter Registration Requirements:
Must be a U.S. citizen
Must be 18 years old to vote in a Consolidated or General Election (or 17 years of age to vote in a Consolidated Primary or General Primary if the individual will be 18 by the time of the Consolidated or General Election)
Must have been a resident of the precinct at least 30 days prior to Election Day
Source: Registering to Vote in Illinois, Illinois State Board of Elections
Fact #2: You can only vote once in each election.
The Voting Rights Act prohibits voting more than once in an election.
(e) Voting more than once
(1) Whoever votes more than once in an election referred to in paragraph (2) shall be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.
(2) The prohibition of this subsection applies with respect to any general, special, or primary election held solely or in part for the purpose of selecting or electing any candidate for the office of President, Vice President, presidential elector, Member of the United States Senate, Member of the United States House of Representatives, Delegate from the District of Columbia, Guam, or the Virgin Islands, or Resident Commissioner of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
(3) As used in this subsection, the term "votes more than once" does not include the casting of an additional ballot if all prior ballots of that voter were invalidated, nor does it include the voting in two jurisdictions under section 10502 of this title, to the extent two ballots are not cast for an election to the same candidacy or office.
In Illinois specifically, a person who attempts to vote more than once is committing a Class 3 felony. A Class 3 felony generally carries a prison sentence between two to five years, plus one year of probation. In addition, voting systems in Illinois will not allow more than one vote per voter. The ballot will be rejected.
Sources: 2024 Vote by Mail FAQ, Illinois State Board of Elections; Illinois Felony Crimes by Class and Sentence, Criminal Defense Lawyer
Fact #3: Voting by mail is accurate and secure.
Mail-in ballots are a secure way to vote because the voter must:
Sign an application form to get a ballot; and
Sign the envelope in which the ballot is mailed back to the election authority
Once the ballot is received by the election authority and in-person voting is closed, the mail-in ballot envelope is reviewed. Using the unique scan code on the envelope, two election judges, one from each party, compare the signature on the envelope to the voter’s registration record. The signatures must match the voter’s signature on their registration record for the ballot to be counted, and both election judges must agree that the signature is valid. At that point, the ballot is removed from the envelope and processed through the voting equipment.
Mail-in ballots are counted only if they were postmarked or marked with a USPS barcode by Election Day or dropped in one of the election commissions’ secure drop boxes.
Source: Illinois Board of Elections
Fact #4: Machine counts are more accurate than hand counts.
Election officials have moved away from hand counting in all but the smallest jurisdictions. Studies have shown that when counting a large number of ballots with multiple contests, hand counting is more expensive, inefficient, and error-prone than machine counting. Having people count votes by hand is not more secure. The machines that count ballots must meet federal and state security standards and go through testing to ensure that the machines are accurately counting ballots.
Hand counting of ballots is an important check on the accuracy of machines. In Illinois, every vote, whether cast in early voting, voting by mail, or in person voting on election day, has a paper record that can be verified. Forty four states, including Illinois, require post-election tabulation audits, which typically involve counting a sample of ballots by hand to confirm that the machines worked properly.
Sources: Brennan Center for Justice; US Election Assistance Commission
Fact #5: Voting machines accurately record votes.
Our election system has numerous checks in place to prevent fraudulent ballots from being accepted in an actual election and to check that electronic systems are tabulating votes accurately. While practices vary by locality, all state and local officials employ a combination of testing and certification practices both before and after elections. This includes federal, state, and local testing during procurement and immediately before each election, as well as post-election audits comparing paper totals to machine counts.
Election officials audit voting machines at every step to make sure votes are recorded correctly, and they maintain a ballot chain of custody. They know if voting machines are hacked.
Source: 7 Facts About Voting-and Myths Being Spread About Them, Brennan Center for Justice, 11/2/22; Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency
Fact #6: Election officials must certify accurate results.
Election officials are legally bound to certify election results after all votes have been counted and after any records, post-election audits, or legal challenges have been completed and confirmed the vote totals. Once these totals are final, the act of certifying the elections is ministerial only. Election officials and governors are obligated to certify the candidates with the most voters as winners, no matter who they personally favor.
Source: Brennan Center For Justice
Fact #7: Noncitizen voting is illegal and rare.
Some have suggested that federal legislation is needed to prevent noncitizen voting, though noncitizen voting is extremely rare, easily caught, and has large negative consequences—including potential deportation. In 2016, the Brennan Center looked for instances of non-citizen voting and found 30 suspected cases amid 23.5 million votes in 2016, or .0001% of all votes cast. Additionally, the Heritage Foundation’s database of confirmed fraud cases list fewer than 100 examples of noncitizens voting between 2002 and 2022, according to CNN.
Source: The Algorithmic Transparency Institute, Rumors Report, 4/16/24 and 7/9/24; Brennan Center for Justice; Democracy Docket; Voting Rights Lab
Fact #8: You can’t vote online or by text message.
The only legitimate forms of voting are in person and Vote by Mail ballot.
Source: Illinois State Board of Elections
Fact #9: Voting equipment is never connected to the internet.
The presence of WiFi networks at polling locations leads some people to claim that it provides a way for hackers to tamper with voting machines. None of the voting equipment in Illinois is ever connected to the internet, either in the polling place or in the Clerk’s Office when votes are being tabulated or results are being processed. The data drives containing the results are designed explicitly for that specific voting equipment.
Polling locations are often located in places like libraries, churches, schools, and municipal buildings, where it is common to find public and private WiFi networks. The mere presence of WiFi does not indicate nefarious behavior on the part of election officials.
Source: The Algorithmic Transparency Institute, Rumors Report, 4/2/24; How Illinois Strives to Ensure a Secure Election Process, LWVIL Webinar, 3/6/24 featuring Matt Dietrich, Illinois Board of Election Public Information Officer
Fact #10: There is a paper record for every ballot cast in Illinois
In Illinois, every vote has a paper record so that it can be verified, audited, and/or recounted if necessary. Depending on the voting system, the paper record is either a preprinted ballot, a ballot which is printed on demand at the polling location; or is a paper receipt that is issued for the voter to verify their vote.
Source: How Illinois Strives to Ensure a Secure Election Process, LWVIL Webinar, 3/6/24 featuring Matt Dietrich, Illinois Board of Election Public Information Officer
Fact #11: Automatic voter registration is accurate and secure.
Automatic voter registration (AVR) is a process by which eligible voters are “automatically registered… through their interactions with state agencies, most commonly when people apply for or renew their driver’s license.” AVR became legal in Illinois in August 2017, when SB1933 was signed into law.
State agencies in Illinois where eligible voters can register to vote or update an existing registration include the DMV, divisions of Family and Community Services and Rehabilitation Services of the Department of Human Services, the Department of Employment Security, the Department of Natural Resources, or an agency of the state or federal government that has been determined by the Board of Elections to have correct information and has been entered into an interagency contract with the State Board of Elections to participate in the AVR program.
Some have suggested that automatic voter registration enables noncitizen voting and voter roll manipulation. In fact, AVR keeps voter rolls more accurate by creating a constant stream of updates between registration agencies and elections officials and by reducing the odds of mistakes caused by processing paper registration forms by hand. Cleaner rolls reduce errors that cause delays on Election Day. AVR also lowers costs by allowing states to save money on printing, mailing, and data entry.
Sources: Automatic Voter Registration Summary, Brennan Center for Justice; The Algorithmic Transparency Institute, Rumors Report, 4/9/24
Fact #12: Illinois’ new driver’s license for noncitizen residents can’t be used to register to vote.
As of July 1, 2024, Illinois allows noncitizen residents to receive a standard driver’s license with the wording “Federal Limits Apply” printed on top. The new driver’s license replaces the current Temporary Visitor Driver’s License (TVDL) with the purple banner that noncitizen residents have already been legally using.
While the TVDL was only able to be used to drive, the new driver’s licenses can also be used as a form of identification to open bank accounts or apply for housing. The new cards note that they cannot be used to vote or attain citizenship.
Those eligible for a TVDL must have lived in Illinois for more than a year and not have a Social Security number. Individuals must provide their U.S. immigration documentation, a passport or a consular card, requirements that remain the same under the new proposal.
Applicants for a standard driver’s license would be required to follow the same process as applying for a TVDL. Still, the license they receive would be the same as one issued to any other Illinoisan whose ID does not comply with federal REAL ID guidelines.