States Need an Election Crimes Unit
- BY FGA
Does your state have no election crime—or is it just not being prosecuted?
Whether it’s a Soros-funded district attorney turning a blind eye to election crimes or confusion over where to report alleged crimes, states would benefit from having a designated unit.
A recent research paper by the Foundation for Government Accountability (FGA) dived into Florida’s success with their Office of Election Crimes and Security.
Since the unit was created, there have been more than 2,000 complaints and 1,000 independent investigations initiated. More than 1,500 cases have been referred to another agency, and 234 cases were referred to special agents. In 2022, 20 individuals were arrested.
The law that created this designated election crimes unit also promotes transparency by requiring a report to be submitted to the governor, the legislature, and the public detailing the numbers. And for each alleged violation, the report lists the source of the violation, the law violated, the county in which it occurred, whether the violation was referred to another agency, and if so, which agency, and the current status of the investigation or resulting criminal case. The ability for anyone to see the progress of these investigations helps strengthen and restore trust in our institutions.
Other states would benefit from having their own election crimes unit.
Several states have election crimes units, enacted by governors and other officials rather than the legislature. According to FGA’s paper, Virginia’s attorney general and Ohio’s secretary of state both created units in their offices to investigate election law violations. Texas established election integrity units in 2021. Since 2015, the attorney general has prosecuted 155 individuals for 534 election fraud offenses, with hundreds more prosecutions and investigations pending.
The next step for these states would be to have their legislatures codify these units into state law. Without the law behind them, their great work risks being overturned should a less sympathetic individual replace them in office.
For more on election crimes units and what states can do to protect their elections, click here.
