Counting

This interview is part of EIN’s “After and Before" Series. After 2020 and 2022, and Before 2024: Who's Counting? with Cleta Mitchell Podcasts discussing state-by-state experiences in 2022 from the Election Integrity Network’s citizen leaders: The bad…but also the good – and the positive difference an election integrity infrastructure made and is making in state after state. Whatever do purple pens and knitting patterns have to do with election integrity efforts? Cleta’s guest Elizabeth Butler, leader of the Broward County, Florida, Election Integrity Task Force describes a few notable red flags she has discovered both as an election integrity activist in Virginia, and now in Florida. Elizabeth has a background in engineering and management, that she believes has trained her to identify patterns and knit them together to reveal persistent problems – a key skill in her work as an election integrity leader. Elizabeth started her election integrity work in Virginia in 2015 as a volunteer poll observer, then formed the Richmond, VA election integrity task force in 2021 and became a key leader in Virginia’s Fair Elections Coalition, before moving to Broward County, Florida in 2022. Because of her unique perspective as an election integrity leader in two states, Elizabeth has become one of the most knowledgeable leaders in the country on election processes. Having been involved in election integrity operations in two states with two very different sets of laws and procedures, Elizabeth has learned – and taught others – key principles required to protect the integrity of the election systems, regardless of location. With a particular knowledge about election processes, ballot harvesting and the problems of verifying identity of voters who vote by mail, Elizabeth has not just made a difference in her county in a short period of time, but has lent her expertise to the statewide Florida Fair Elections Coalition originally launched by Election Integrity Network. Elizabeth has also served as an instructor at several of EIN’s statewide Election Integrity Summits. Elizabeth describes noticing a stack of vote by mail ballots in Broward County marked with the same purple pen and indicating the same political choices – and blank boxes – which clearly raised questions of the authenticity of the ballots. Elizabeth and Cleta discuss the challenges of keeping such ballots from being included in the count, and some specific and strategic ways to identify and solve problems in the election system. Elizabeth Butler is making a real difference in helping her fellow citizens develop expertise in election procedures, and the confidence to speak up and point out the issues that plague every election system – and to help restore integrity in the election process. Elizabeth is a role model for citizen involvement in the election process. Be encouraged! And be engaged!

“A Catastrophic Voter Suppression Tsunami on November 8 in Maricopa County, AZ” From the moment polls opened at the large voting centers in Maricopa County on November 8, 2022, until they finally closed that evening, there was nothing resembling a normal election day process in literally half of the voting centers: massive voting equipment failure, mismanagement, and misinformation from county officials….resulting in thousands, if not tens of thousands, of voters who, for myriad reasons, may well have been denied their right to vote, Gina Swoboda, President of the Voter Reference Foundation and state leader of the AZ Election Integrity Coalition, was a guest last week on RightSide, the organization’s podcast. Gina describes the system for voting in Maricopa County, the steady deterioration of election administration, management, and reliability in that County over that past several election cycles, and the gory details of what happened on November 8. The outpouring of citizen reports, narratives, and sharing / documenting of personal experiences as voters, election workers, poll observers, and volunteer attorneys reveal a day of chaos where those in charge continued to misinform and mislead the public, the voters, election workers at the polls, and the media as to what was happening. Those officials claimed that problems had been ‘fixed’ when they weren’t. They gave multiple sets of instructions that caused even more problems and that contradicted established procedures, and through it all, presided over a complete breakdown of order, lawful voting, and the protection of the sacred right to vote guaranteed to every citizen in the country – but which was far from guaranteed in Maricopa County, AZ on November 8. The Election Integrity Network has now published eyewitness reports from members of the AZ Election Integrity Coalition that Gina Swoboda has ably lead for the past year. EIN added these reports to our website at www.whoscounting.us, in order that these citizen observers’ and election workers’ voices would be heard. The problems of Maricopa County are shocking. Watch / listen to Gina Swoboda and read the stories of the people who were there. Share this episode of RightSide and send the link to he Maricopa County reports at the EIN website: www.whoscounting.us/maricopa Let’s not allow these voices and their truths to be discarded. Don’t let the ‘observer deniers’ refusal to read, listen and learn be the final word about Maricopa County’s lawsless 2022 general election. The truth is here. Amplify it. Help tell the story that Gina Swoboda shares in this podcast. Support our fellow Americans in Maricopa County who have been so mistreated by those entrusted with running their elections and who completely failed to uphold their responsibilities to protect every citizen’s right to vote. That simply didn’t happen in Maricopa County in 2022. Again. First aired on November 18, 2022 and Shared by permission from RightSide, a podcast of the Voter Reference Foundation https://www.restorationofamerica.com/first-right/

EYEWITNESSES TO ELECTION CHAOS IN MARICOPA COUNTY. Find our full report from election workers and poll observers at www.whoscounting.us/maricopa

This interview is part of EIN’s “After and Before" Series. After 2020 and 2022, and Before 2024: Who's Counting with Cleta Mitchell Podcasts discussing state-by-state experiences in 2022 from the Election Integrity Network’s citizen leaders: The bad…but also the good – and the positive difference an election integrity infrastructure made and is making in state after state. After attending the Michigan statewide Election Integrity Summit in May, Patrice Johnson of Pure Integrity for Michigan Elections – went on to create the Michigan Fair Elections Coalition. On its first weekly coalition call, twenty-four participants joined Patrice and that number is currently at eighty and growing as the Coalition continues to add new members every day and now has monthly in-person meetings. All the news out of Michigan is not good for election integrity. The legislature flipped to blue, and the Democrat Governor, Secretary of State, and Attorney General – all of whom have opposed election integrity and individual liberty at every turn – were reelected. The state also passed a proposition that significantly weakens ballot protections – via a constitutional amendment whose proponents lied to the voters Amazingly, however, as Patrice notes, these results have not discouraged citizen activists in her coalition, but have actually “fired them up” to work even harder, even if that means a litigation rather than legislation strategy. The coalition is already suing the state to remove Michigan from the corrupt, leftwing controlled Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC) that layers a level of opacity over a system that should be transparent and does nothing to clean voter rolls. Cleta and Patrice also discuss an emerging leftwing practice of using tax dollars to fund leftist influenced voter registration and turnout on college campuses in Michigan and nationwide. Despite the political outcomes in the state, Patrice shares good news and experiences that prove the importance and effectiveness of citizen engagement. Patrice is confident that the volunteers in PIME and the Michigan Fair Elections Coalition will continue to make a difference in fighting for truth and fairness of Michigan elections. Be encouraged – and be engaged!

This interview is part of EIN’s “After and Before" Series. After 2020 and 2022, and Before 2024: Who's Counting With Cleta Mitchell Podcasts discussing state-by-state experiences in 2022 from the Election Integrity Network’s citizen leaders: The bad…but also the good – and the positive difference an election integrity infrastructure made and is making in state after state. Just after election 2022, Cleta Mitchell sat down with Lynn Taylor, president of the Virginia Institute for Public Policy and chair of the Virginia Fair Elections Coalition (vafairelections.org) to identify the proven impact election integrity coalitions have had in the Commonwealth. Lynn provides specific examples of the positive effect the local task forces and the state coalition have demonstrated against the backdrop of Virginia's weak election laws. The goal of the Election Integrity movement according to Lynn Taylor? “Election integrity is not about a particular race, or a political party or political outcome, but striving toward free, fair and transparent elections that provide ALL voters with confidence in results”. What started out as a small cadre of concerned citizens in 2021 who knew "something is just not right" with their voting procedures has grown into a robust statewide coalition of active and well-trained election integrity advocates and poll observers. A key role is to understand election procedure law, make sure it is followed, and in some cases, even assist election officials to better understand statutory rules. Virginia's election integrity advocates who came into the coalition in 2021 remain a vital part of the effort, with more patriot heroes being added every week – and determined to stay and to build the network for future elections. THEY are the ones who continue to make it stronger. They are determined to continue to work to change the bad election system in Virginia until integrity is baked into the election code permanently. At Election Integrity Network, we tell everyone: only YOU can help save America’s election process. Be encouraged – and be engaged!

The election integrity movement has been attacked by the left wing propaganda press and even the President of the United States, and its members openly threatened and intimidated. Why? Because, as EIN Chairman Cleta Mitchell notes in this post-election podcast, with the engagement of citizen patriots, our movement has made major strides in protecting the “consent of the governed” – the foundation of our constitutional republic. In one short year, EIN has moved to protect ballots and lawful voters with: ten election integrity summits nationwide to train and provide resources to the election integrity movement; release of our downloadable Citizens Guide to Building a Permanent Infrastructure; creation of online Election Integrity Master Classes covering all aspects of election integrity; Cleta’s informative series of Who’s Counting podcasts with election integrity experts; and utilizing the “Virginia Model” to foster and host a nationwide state election integrity leaders call, more than two dozen state-based task forces and countless local task forces. These resources allow our grassroots partners and poll watchers to learn how to accurately and lawfully observe, document and report any activity in voting that does not comport with state law. With specific examples from a number of states, Cleta explains the history of left wing infiltration that led to the weakening of voter protections, and discusses specific strategies and steps EIN will be taking in the next two years to reverse bad law and promote strong protections. We will address our system’s greatest weaknesses including Vote By Mail (a methodology proven impossible for election officials to verify voter identification,) promoting laws that ensure the number of voters equals the number of ballots cast equals the number of votes counted, that the acceptance of ballots ends at 7 PM on election day, and enforcing laws that require political parity as poll observation is specifically designed so that each party watches the other. EIN will also continue to support litigation that protects voters and enforces law and any other policy and legislative fixes that provide transparency, accuracy, fairness and accountability in every corner of election law and procedure. Another goal is to ensure that statewide election integrity task forces are up and running in every state. We hope you will join us on this election integrity journey, share our resources with others, and become a partner with us and thousands of “regular folks” around the country concerned with the security and fairness of our elections.

From Hurricane Ian to Illegal Ballot Harvesting Schemes to Ensuring Citizen Access to the Election Process, Cord Byrd Is Bullish on Florida’s Election System. A lawyer and former state legislator, Secretary of State Cord Byrd was appointed in May 2022 by Governor Ron DeSantis to serve as Florida’s Secretary of State. Since May, Secretary Byrd has traveled to each of Florida’s 67 counties, meeting with every county Supervisor of Elections and inspecting every county election office. In this Episode of Who’s Counting? with Cleta Mitchell, Cleta talks with Secretary Byrd about Florida’s system of election administration: an appointed Secretary of State, with 67 separately elected county Supervisors of Elections (SOEs), and how they work together to operate one of the best election systems in America. As a legislator, Secretary Byrd helped shepherd Governor DeSantis’s recent election reform bills through the 2022 legislative session, notably creating a guarantee of ‘reasonable access’ of citizens to the voting process (“no pizza boxes in the windows of Florida’s election offices!”) to the creation of the first in the nation Office of Election Crimes and Security, as a Division of the Secretary of State’s office. Already, the new bureau has referred several matters to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, including an illegal ballot harvesting scheme recently uncovered by a local citizens election integrity task force in Orange County (Orlando). Secretary Byrd has been a volunteer poll watcher and election day attorney, was part of the army of attorneys during the 2000 presidential recount and authored the Florida law that all Florida voters mark a paper ballot that is retained to verify and confirm voting machine tabulations. Secretary Byrd personifies the excellence in executive appointments by Gov. DeSantis (America’s Governor!) that people so admire. Bullish on Florida’s election system, Secretary Byrd offers in this episode a bird’s eye view into how elections ought to be run: peaceful, lawful and honest.

Election Integrity Facts Must Triumph Over Deceptive Language from the Left in Michigan Ballot Question….and in Every State. Don’t Be Deceived! Learn the Truth about the Ballot Measures in Your State! Jason Snead, Executive Director of Honest Elections Project, is not just a veteran election lawyer and policy expert, as well as a messaging guru regarding election laws and policy, but a friend to every voter in our country who wants elections to be honest, lawful and fair – and believe that all legal votes should be counted accurately. Jason and his team were on the forefront of defeating attempts in the last two years by the left to federalize elections and remove states’ Constitutional rights to administer their elections. Now, Honest Elections Project is fighting for … honest elections … in states from Alaska to Massachusetts and everywhere in between as the left continues to try to pass laws and state constitutional amendments that dilute election protections and give Democrats a one-sided and unfair political advantage. In this episode, Jason explains and describes a full list of election integrity concerns – providing voter ID (which Honest Elections polling shows is supported by 84% of Americans,) the dangers inherent in voting by mail, widespread inaccuracy of voter rolls, the lack of restrictions in some states for ballot trafficking, and problems with Ranked Choice Voting that discourages voter participation and leaves some ballots uncounted for in an electoral trash can. Where are these state battles? What full information do you need to know in your state before you vote on amendments or referenda? Election integrity in many states hangs in the balance as voters may unwittingly be deceived by proposals that borrow our election integrity language, but where the substantive provisions do just the opposite of the ‘descriptions’ of the measures. Know before you go! And find out what these ballot propositions actually do, in this episode of Who’s Counting with Cleta Mitchell.

When the left gets nervous, it unleashes baseless attacks on good people through its cheerleaders in the media. In recent years, the anti-election integrity left has done its best to water down election protections and is now ramping up its rhetoric with not-so-subtle threats against election integrity advocates and poll observers. “Do not be dismayed!” notes EIN Chairman Cleta Mitchell. Her advice? Be “right and polite,” never lose your temper when observing voting in your local precincts, and never raise your voice – even under the most trying of circumstances. “Observe, report and document” is the role of the election observer, and strictly following these “eyes and ears only” guidelines is the recipe for success. For over a year, EIN has focused on educating citizens of any party interested in protecting all ballots, with the goal of empowering election observers with information, resources and confidence necessary to become involved in the election process. Patriots and conservatives are engaged at greater levels than ever, and the left – with its goal of further destabilizing elections – doesn’t like it, and are metaphorically banging their spoons on their highchairs in protest. Cleta walks through the current meritless threats from the media, the pre-emptive negative coverage election observers are receiving, and specific instances where “eyes on every ballot” have made an enormous difference for election integrity. Citizens not only have the right to engage in the election process; they have an obligation to do so. “Peaceful. Lawful. Honest.” This is the formula for ensuring that every day citizens (not leftist elites) can engage in election integrity without fear but with great success.

How Local Election Integrity Volunteers in Fairfax, VA Were Right, Polite, and Persistent in Making the Case to Sever Ties with Konnech Christine Brim, Chairman of the Fairfax County, VA Election Integrity Task Force describes in this episode of Who’s Counting? with Cleta Mitchell how her group of local volunteers took action in August 2022 when they first heard of possible ties between their county’s poll worker management software, PollChief and the Chinese Communist Party. These dedicated Virginia volunteers researched for themselves information about the company that owns PollChief: Konnech Software. After confirming the validity of the allegations about Konnech’s ties to the CCP, they began providing that documentation to the Fairfax County election officials. For nearly two months, the volunteers politely – and rightly – persisted in forwarding documentation about potential data sharing with China….and continued asking, “Will Fairfax County terminate its contract with Konnech?” Then, when Eugene Yu, CEO of Konnech was arrested on October 4th on charges of identity theft of election worker data, a Pandora’s box of election integrity threats exploded in public view – and Fairfax County took immediate action – because they had been educated by their local citizen volunteers. In this episode of Who’s Counting? with Cleta Mitchell, Cleta speaks with Christine about what their local task force did, how they did it, and how they politely but accurately informed their local election administrators about why Fairfax County needed to terminate the Konnech contract. This episode confirms the vital role of the local election integrity task forces and the importance of citizen researchers and volunteers who can support local election officials if those officials will accept their help. Something that the Fairfax County election officials ultimately did. Other election officials should take heed and listen to their citizens as did Fairfax County on Konnech. To view Christine’s report on the history and details of the Konnech security breach, click here. https://fairfaxgop.org/information-for-election-officers-on-konnech-software/ This is a case study in why EIN is doing what it is doing. Building a permanent election integrity infrastructure.

The future of our republic rests in the confidence of the American voter.

The Citizen Research Project was launched to help research every state and local election office across the country to discover if election offices are relying on grants by nonprofits or other leftist entities to administer, guide, or direct local election systems. Election Integrity advocates should try to obtain the information on these groups by establishing good relationships with your local election officials. You can gather this information by attending official state and local election meetings — be sure to attend every public meeting of the election authorities in your state or county.

Get the update from the Virginia Institute's Lynn Taylor about what Virginia did in 2021 for Election Integrity and learn how your state can replicate their model in 2022 and beyond....

Protecting Vulnerable Voters from dangerous schemes is an important step for any election integrity group. Don't believe there's fraudsters preying upon vulnerable voters? Here's just one example from Michigan: Trenae Myesha Rainey, 28, pleaded guilty to three misdemeanor counts of making a false statement on an absentee ballot application. During the 2020 general election, Rainey, an employee at an assisted living facility, completed roughly two dozen absentee voter applications, forging individual signatures of residents. She then handed over the ballots to another employee, whom she instructed to send the absentee ballot requests to the county election clerk. Rainey was sentenced to two years' probation, in which the first 45 days would be spent in the county jail. http://thf_media.s3.amazonaws.com/2020/Voter%20Fraud%20Database/3_22/Trenae%20Ryesha%20Rainey%202022%20MI.pdf

Building coalition and growing your local election integrity task force are key elements to growing our movement.

EIN Chairman Cleta Mitchell: Citizens must take ACTION NOW to Save Our Elections – Join our Campaign for Action for Election Integrity In this first anniversary episode of our Who’s Counting? with Cleta Mitchell podcast, Cleta recounts the building of the Election Integrity Infrastructure across America in 2021 and 2022. But MOST importantly, Cleta summons everyone to TAKE ACTION NOW to help save our elections: Sign up to be a Poll Worker or Poll Watcher in YOUR state! Visit www.WhosCounting.US and click on our pop up “Uncle Sam” to volunteer as a poll worker or poll watcher. There are links to both the Democratic National Committee and the Republican National Committee websites for signing up to engage in the elections. Nothing is more important this fall than YOUR involvement in observing and assisting in making sure the elections are conducted according to the law! Cleta describes in this episode the many resources that EIN has produced over the past year that are available to YOU to help protect the elections in YOUR local area. EIN hosted eight statewide training summits this year, and there are now seventeen statewide election integrity coalitions meeting online weekly, with more coming soon. Watch for more information on our website as we build out the state-by-state information. THIS IS THE CRITICAL MOMENT TO SIGN UP, BECOME ENGAGED, BE A POLL WORKER OR WATCHER! Visit the EIN website: www.whoscounting.us to sign up! Under our “Resources” tab on www.WhosCounting.US, you can download the Citizen Guide to Building an Election Integrity Infrastructure and also watch our short “Election Integrity Master Class” videos which cover all the topics in the Guide. It is all free to you and we want you to watch, read, use, and share. In this Podcast, Cleta notes that the government only derives “its just powers” through the consent of the governed. We give and withdraw our consent through elections. WE as the American voters have the power to make elections more secure and transparent, and we must continue to fearlessly band together to make that happen. And it all starts with WATCHING! OBSERVING! WORKING! So sign up….get trained….get assigned to watch the voting process in your local area. America is counting on YOU!

Heritage Foundation Election Law Scorecard Tracks Homeruns and Strikeouts for Every State Heritage Foundation Senior Legal Fellow Hans von Spakosvky talks with Cleta about the current state of Heritage’s Election Integrity Scorecard, a comprehensive index of state election laws – and the progress (or failure to advance) by the states since the scorecard was first released in December 2021. Hans and his team based their analyses of the states’ laws on numerous aspects including voter ID, absentee ballot verification, voter roll maintenance, bans of private funding of election offices, whether a state protects legislative authority over election laws, and whether the election code is protected from legal attacks by the vast leftwing legal assault machine, and many other components. As legislatures change election laws, for good or for ill, the Scorecard is regularly updated. https://www.heritage.org/electionscorecard/ According to the Scorecard, Tennessee and Georgia have the best laws on their books, with Hawaii and Nevada the worst. How does your state rate? But never forget: a state can have a great election code, but there is NO election integrity if the laws are not followed or enforced. This Election Integrity Scorecard is an important tool for helping citizens assess the election statutes in their states – and to help guide legislative changes where there are shortfalls. Individual citizens’ engagement is essential for ensuring elections are conducted in a manner consistent with the law. The more we all know, the better we are able to hold both legislators and election officials accountable for ensuring that the basic framework for integrity is established by statutes….and then followed at election time.

In a new report, Verity Vote founder Heather Honey utilizes her open source investigative skills to uncover an emerging vote fraud concern -- overseas ballots and their potential as a strategy for leftwing vote fraud. Analysis of overseas ballots, and leftwing social media chatter unabashedly promoting it as a new frontier for fraud, should be a great concern to election integrity advocates. In 2020, despite a significant decrease in private citizens living abroad, civilian overseas ballots increased in massive numbers. A discrepancy of 350,000 ballots exists between numbers reported by the federal government and counts by the states. Many “overseas” ballots were cast by email from … somewhere. Selected hand recounts found as many as 100 percent of these votes were for one presidential candidate only. Join Cleta and Heather as they discuss what this new information could mean for the security of our elections.

Join Cleta and Heather as they discuss why state participation in ERIC is a threat to election integrity. They sound the alarm and expose how state tax dollars, flowing to ERIC, are really being used for partisan political projects to build Democratic turnout in elections. Heather Honey, founder of Verity Vote, is an open source investigator. Utilizing her expert research skills in a new report, Heather exposes the secret connection whereby ERIC, (Electronic Registration Information Center.) a taxpayer funded entity, is a primary obstacle to cleaning America’s voter rolls. Founded and initially funded by the left ostensibly to “help” with voter roll accuracy, its real mission is to create new Democrat voters from a database of Americans who have declined to register to vote. Heather discusses how her research exposes the relationship between ERIC and the Center for Election Innovation and Research, one of the two entities funded by Mark Zuckerberg in 2020 to drive up Democrat turnout through local and state election offices in key states

Listen to exclusive content from the Virginia Institute's Lynn Taylor at the Arizona's Election Integrity Summit, with a sneak peak at some of our exclusive content. Learn how Virginia put itself on the path toward restoring confidence in their elections with lessons learned from 2021! The Virginia Model is something that any other state across the nation can emulate and use as a blueprint when building their election integrity infrastructure. Learn more about the Virginia Model at vafairelections.org

The Left’s Deliberate Plan for Election Confusion with Ranked Choice Voting. The Heritage Foundation Senior Legal Fellow, Hans von Spakovsky, is an attorney and nationally renowned expert in election law and procedures. In this episode, Cleta and Hans expose an emerging threat to election integrity – ranked choice voting. Complex, disorienting and arguably unconstitutional, it is destabilizing to our electoral process, unfair to our voters, and must be stopped. RCV’s targets are conservative districts and its victims are its voters. In Alaska’s first round congressional primary (June), Sarah Palin came in first and Democrat Mary Peltola, fourth. In round two (August) 60% of voters voted Republican yet Peltola won. In New York's recent mayoral race, 140K legitimate ballots were deliberately discarded during the RCV process. Alaskans were hoodwinked into thinking it was a good idea; now they know better. It is on the ballot in Nevada this November, and being pushed by the left in other states in an effort to end a voter's right to specifically choose the candidate of their choice. A report on ranked choice voting by Hans and J. Christian Adams of the Public Interest Legal Foundation can be found here. https://www.heritage.org/election-integrity/report/ranked-choice-voting-bad-choice

Your local task force can ensure that this equipment is kept up to date and working properly before the election. Every voting machines must be tested prior to every election. Be able to identify what technology is used in your local elections. Are your local election offices using electronic/automated systems to verify signatures? Are you allowed to observe the use of those processes? Is the equipment working properly? Are the E-Poll books working properly before the election?

Oh boy, those voting machines! Everyone knows they present problems with the election but how do you have oversight over these machines? Every task force and working group needs someone specialized in technology to get the oversight necessary. One resource is the Election Systems Commission certifies software across the nation (EAC.GOV). The Technology Working Group must be familiar with the decisions made by the state and local elections offices about the systems and software used. Listen to this video to know the questions you should ask local election officials about the voting machines used in your local jurisdiction.

Your task force should be worried about military voters that aren't counted. How does your local office handle overseas military ballots? What is the calendar they use to send these votes off? All people should have a full and equal right to vote. What are your local offices preparation to assist with disabled voters? Know your rights so we can protect vulnerable voters.