IU Law Professor Criticizes Handling Of Voter Fraud Investigation

An Indiana University law professor says state officials’ handling of a possible voter fraud investigation threatens the legitimacy of the election.

The investigation into a group called the Indiana Voter Registration Project has led to accusations of voter fraud from the Indiana State Police and Secretary of State. It’s unclear how many potential registrations the investigation covers.

But Indiana University law professor Luis Fuentes-Rohwer says there’s very little evidence of voter fraud in Indiana’s history. And he says he’s skeptical of the accusations without seeing some evidence.

“They led with the claim and left the evidence behind to be brought up at a future date,” Fuentes-Rohwer says. “I would call that almost irresponsible.”

And Fuentes-Rohwer says even if the group was forging some registration forms, Indiana’s voter ID law still makes influencing the election unlikely.

“If you were to try to steal an election – and I don’t recommend you do – but if you were to try to do that, you would not do it this way,” he says.

Fuentes-Rohwer says he thinks the larger issue is the election system itself.

“Why we place partisans in charge of elections is really the bigger problem and I wish we would stop,” he says. “And until we do, these questions will keep recurring.”

The Secretary of State’s office recommends Hoosiers check their voter registration either on the state’s website or with their local county clerk.