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2020 Election Fraud? What One-Fifth of Mail-In Voters Told Survey



About 1 in 5 mail-in voters in the 2020 election admit to engaging in some type of voting irregularity, a poll released Tuesday shows. 

The Rasmussen poll of 1,085 likely voters was sponsored by The Heartland Institute, a free-market think tank, from Nov. 30 to Dec. 6. 

The Heartland/Rasmussen poll found that 17% of mail-in voters surveyed said that in 2020 they voted in a state where theyโ€™re โ€œno longer a permanent resident.โ€

Voting in a state where the voter doesnโ€™t live is illegal. 

Another 21% of mail-in voters surveyed said they filled out a ballot for a friend or family member. In addition, 17% of these voters said they signed a ballot for a friend or family member โ€œwith or without his or her permissionโ€

State laws vary on what assistance is allowed in filling out a ballot, but all states ban filling out a ballot or forging a ballot for someone else. 

The poll found that 10% of all respondentsโ€”not just those who voted by mailโ€”said they know โ€œa friend, family member, co-worker, or other acquaintance who has admitted โ€ฆ that he or she cast a mail-in ballot in 2020 in a state other than his or her state of permanent residence.โ€

A smaller portion, 8%, said they were offered โ€œpayโ€ or a โ€œrewardโ€ for voting in 2020. It is a felony to buy or sell votes. 

In 2020, an election year affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, a record 43% of voters voted by mail, according to the Election Assistance Commission.

In past elections, only about one-quarter of votes were by mail. In the poll, however, 30% said they voted by mail in 2020, when Democratic nominee Joe Biden defeated incumbent President Donald Trump.

โ€œThese survey results show the importance of implementing forward-looking fixes to election rules and procedures that currently allow and encourage fraud,โ€ Heartland Institute President James Taylor said in a public statement. 

โ€œRegardless of what oneโ€™s views are on the outcome of the 2020 presidential election, Americans deserve an election system that is undeniably transparent and immune from mischief,โ€ Taylor said. โ€œThese survey results conclusively illustrate that election fraud is a rampant and pervasive problem that undermines our democracy.โ€

As explained in my book โ€œThe Myth of Voter Suppression,โ€ absentee and mail-in voting historically has been the largest source of voter fraud.

With regard to enfranchisement, the Rasmussen/Heartland poll asked: โ€œIf your state banned mail-in balloting in next yearโ€™s presidential election, would you choose to vote in person or would you choose not to vote at all?โ€

Nearly all of those surveyed, 94%, said they would just vote in person. Another 2% said they wouldnโ€™t vote, while 4% said they werenโ€™t sure.

Trump and his campaign disputed the outcome of the November 2020 election, but Trumpโ€™s legal team didnโ€™t conclusively prove its claim that the election was stolen. Judges dismissed several legal challenges for lack of standing.

The Rasmussen/Heartland poll found that support for Trump and Biden was about even, with 46% of the 1,085 likely voters surveyed saying they voted for Biden and 45% saying they voted for Trump.

The respondents were 33% Republicans, 36% Democrats, and 31% โ€œother,โ€ Rasmussen said, adding that 32% were 18 to 39 years old, 46% were 40 to 64, and 22% were 65 or older. The margin of error was plus or minus 3 percentage points.