AG: Colorado is girded against voter fraud, intimidation

October 7, 2020 — Neither voter intimidation nor voter fraud exists to any great extent in the state, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser said, but pledged to address both as the need arises.

“We have not gotten any reports to this date. Any statements we have made have been of the nature of public service announcements so people understand what the law is, and my expectation is people will behave responsibly,” Weiser said, during a Monday visit to Montrose.

That tallies with what Montrose County Clerk and Recorder Tressa Guynes also told the Montrose Daily Press, although the subject of poll watchers is proving a “hot topic,” she said. (See related).

Worries about voter intimidation and fraud are at the forefront of national discussion.

“It’s no secret that temperatures are really turned up this year, in voter intimidation and voter protection,” Montrose County Democratic Party Chairman Kevin Kuns said, during Weiser’s informal discussion with local officials.

Attendee John Hughes, meanwhile, said he was more concerned with out-and-out disinformation. Hughes pointed to reports of robocalls in Michigan, where thousands of recipients reportedly were threatened with arrest if they voted, or told they would have to be vaccinated.

“That kind of vast disinformation scares me more than any sort of individual,” Hughes said.

“We are living in a scary time,” Weiser acknowledged — but there are remedies for voter intimidation and fraud alike, he said.

“We here in Colorado have set up a voting system that is the envy of the nation and we’ve got to keep making it work for everybody,” Weiser said.

“We don’t want people voting twice,” he said earlier. “We don’t want people harassing people. We want people to get their ballots, vote how they want to vote.”

Colorado sends ballots by mail to registered voters, who can take their time to fill them out, then either mail them back, or hand-deliver them to a polling station or secure, official drop box. People can also cast their votes on voting machines at designated polling sites.

Weiser reiterated the system is set up to guard against fraud. National figures, most prominently President Donald Trump, have cast doubt on the legitimacy of mail-in ballots.

“We have a system that is also designed to limit the possibility of fraud,” Weiser said.

Although fraud cases in Colorado are few and far between, most entail a family member signing another family member’s signature to that person’s ballot, he said. There have been a few cases of someone with two addresses in different jurisdictions voting twice. Weiser pointed to a 2016 municipal election in Pitkin that saw eight charged with voting in that election, despite having a home outside of Pitkin. One woman appealed her conviction and is again appealing after a successful initial appeal resulted in a new trial and re-conviction.

Although an official with the former Secretary of State’s Office accused 7th Judicial District Attorney Dan Hotsenpiller of voter intimidation for bringing the case, Weiser on Monday said Hotsenpiller was correct.

“What Dan did in that case was underscore the integrity of our election system, which means we need to vote safely, securely, easy to use and anonymously — and only once,” Weiser said.

“It’s unfortunate that it has to be said right now, but the (national) rhetoric right now is at odds with the basic norms of the rule of laws and our democratic institutions,” he added, in response to concerns about a possibly volatile election.

“We want to do it here cleanly and fairly. That’s what our founders had in mind when they talked about self-governance.”

Cases of actual voter fraud have only rarely been referred to his office. “That’s a small number. We’re on the lookout for it, but we have a system that’s designed to limit the possibility,” he said.

Voters are sent a single ballot, except in primary elections, when an unaffiliated voter can vote in either the Democratic or Republican primary. Such voters can return only the ballot for the GOP or the Democrats; returning both will cancel them out.

When voters move, county registration is updated to reflect they are no longer on the rolls in that county.

The state’s signature verification process is designed to catch discrepancies — and, because ballots can be turned in before Election Day and the signatures immediately examined, it provides time to rectify, or cure, any discrepancy, which is not the case in all states with early voting.

In Colorado, most signature discrepancies turn out to be the legitimate elector varying his or her signature somewhat; instances leading to a criminal referral are “truly, truly extraordinary,” Weiser said.

In Colorado, too, people can track their ballot and tell whether it was received. If it isn’t, the voter can cast a provisional ballot in person, and if the mailed ballot later arrives, that would be rejected.

“All of that is superior to a system where ballots don’t get counted until Election Day,” Weiser said.

Voter intimidation occurs when a person harasses another in an attempt to sway that person’s vote. Harassment is illegal and should be reported to law enforcement, Weiser said, stressing that harassment is the issue, not a mere expression of a political difference.

“It is very important that we conduct an election that is clean and fair and that’s how we’ve done things in Colorado. I believe that’s how we’ll do things,” he said.

Although Weiser harbors some worries, he also spoke of Colorado’s track record and architecture for conducting clean elections.

Colorado’s system is safe, even during a pandemic, he said — it’s designed that way, with multiple ways of casting a ballot.

To the small crowd gathered Monday, Weiser said everyone, regardless of political affiliation, needs to be “authentic.”

“All of us need to act with respect and kindness to other people and if you hear about things that are wrong, let (law enforcement) know,” Weiser said, indicating Montrose Police Chief Blaine Hall in the audience.

“We here in Colorado have set up a voting system that is the envy of the nation and we’ve got to keep making it work for everybody,” he said.