Alaska has become the latest state to propose legislation to try and ensure that elections are not tainted by voter fraud.
Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy and Lt. Gov. Kevin Myers are proposing election integrity laws that they hope will create a safe and fair election system.
The draft proposal is said to change how election officials maintain voter rolls and verify voter eligibility. The proposed bill would require election officials to check for voters who are deceased, are registered in other states, or have felony convictions. Alaskans would also be given the option to request voter registration instead of being automatically added to the polls.
According to Justthenews.com, “A signature verification system would be set up to verify absentee ballots. Mail-in ballots could be sent to residents. The bill also would create a toll-free hotline for residents to report voter fraud, which would be better defined. Police would receive training on how to investigate voter fraud.”
Governor Dunleavy said, “We are making the current system more secure through improvements. By consolidating ideas from past bills introduced in the legislature and incorporating practices from other states, we hope to establish a more trustworthy elections system.”
Many conservatives argue that voter integrity laws are common sense and should be supported by all Americans who want to prevent fraud from occurring in our elections.
Being for simple things like voter I.D.—especially for absentee ballots—signature matching, narrow criteria for requesting mail-in ballots, keeping most voting to in-person on Election Day, and limiting the number of drop boxes in communities to prevent ballots from being tampered with without supervision, are obvious safeguards to keep our elections legitimate, they believe.
If the proposed legislation passes, Alaska will join two other GOP led-states, Texas and Georgia, who passed voter integrity laws following the 2020 election.
In March, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp signed voter integrity legislation into law that “strengthens voter Id laws, changes early voting rules, and gives the state legislature more control over elections,” according to Newsy.
Similar legislation passed in Texas following a wave of Texas Democrat state lawmakers who fled the state trying to prevent Governor Greg Abbott from signing into law legislation that strengthens voter ID clarifies poll watchers rights and increases penalties for voter fraud.
Voter integrity laws are a hot topic, and as the 2022 midterm elections approach, the political heat on states to pass voter integrity laws will likely accelerate during the campaign season to come.
