Local party leaders investigating potential voter fraud

The clock is ticking towards Election Day.

And while local party leaders like Joy Miedecke with the East Valley Republican Women Federated are helping hundreds prepare to head to the polls, she said they’ve had many come in to check on their status or update their information.

“We look on our computer, and we can see if they’re still registered as a Republican, a Democrat, a Declined to State, or whatever it is,” Miedecke said. “We look it up for them, and they don’t exist anymore. Even though people have come in and said they’ve been registered for 30 years, and they’ve disappeared.”

Miedecke and others like Republican Organizing Committee of the Desert Chairman Johnny Hildreth said they hope to find answers to issues that have been affecting voters this cycle.

“We had people who received information in the June primary, they received their voter guide, they received their ballot, but all of a sudden they go to the polling place, [and] they’re not on the voter roll,” Hildreth said. “How can you receive your ballot, and not be on the roll.”

Other than people mysteriously disappearing from the roll, Miedecke and Hildreth said she has had residents come in who’ve received cards in the mail offering registration, in exchange for contributions to the Republican National Committee.

“They say that they want to register you to vote, and you need to send them $35, and they will do that,” Miedecke said. “Because you are not found on the rolls. in some instances, it’s nobody’s name. It says anyone that lives there. They don’t have their names. the people are very scared about it.”

Meanwhile, local Democrats like Elle Kurpiewski at the Democratic Headquarters of the Desert said their main issue has been voters who’ve had their party unexpectedly changed.

“Of course, we give them a new application, a new voter registration form and they can re-register,” Kurpiewski said. “But it’s been very curious the number of people that we’ve had come in that have had that issue.”

Miedecke said they have went to the Riverside County District Attorney’s office to look into the case.

Both parties are are able to check if you are registered and ready to go for November.

Officials with the California Secretary of State Office say elections officials across California continue to receive complaints from voters that received letters from an organization called Voter Participation Center (VPC) which inaccurately claim the addressee is not registered to vote.

VPC also included a pre-filled voter registration form that contained incorrect or outdated information or information for persons who don’t live at the address. In many instances, the voter is in fact properly registered to vote.

When it comes to receiving unusual mail asking money for registrations, both sides recommend reporting it to the County Registrar and local police.

To register or update your status, you can visit the Secretary of State’s voter registration website by clicking here.