“Absentee ballots remain the largest source of potential voter fraud.” It’s the conclusion of the bipartisan 2005 report of the Commission on Federal Election Reform, chaired by former President Jimmy Carter and former Secretary of State James Baker III. In 2012, the New York Times warned: “Absentee ballots also make it much easier to buy and sell votes. In recent years, courts have invalidated mayoral elections in Illinois and Indiana because of fraudulent absentee ballots.” The article quotes Federal Circuit Court Judge Richard Posner as writing: “Absentee voting is to voting in person as a take-home exam is to a proctored one” [Emphasis added].
Historically, before the US had secret ballots, around 10 percent of votes may have been bought.
The big problem with this type of fraud is that both parties — the ones buying the votes and the ones whose votes are being bought — have an incentive to hide the transaction.
Now comes word that
The New York Times and the Washington Post now claim that these cases amount to voter suppression and not something that really occurs often.Six individuals in rural Frio County, Texas — including two Pearsall City Council members and a school board trustee — were indicted on felony charges stemming from a growing election fraud investigation led by Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton. . . .
Announced on May 1, the indictments include Frio County Judge Rochelle Camacho, Pearsall City Council members Ramiro Trevino and Racheal Garza, Pearsall ISD Trustee Adriann Ramirez, former Frio County Elections Administrator Carlos Segura, and resident Rosa Rodriguez.
Most of the accused face felony charges for “vote harvesting,” a Texas offense that involves collecting and submitting other people’s absentee ballots, often for payment. Several defendants allegedly used Cash App for these transactions. Segura faces a separate charge of tampering with evidence.
The indictments followed accusations by Mary Moore, Camacho’s opponent in the March 2022 Democratic primary. According to affidavits, Moore claimed Camacho employed a woman who had been collecting ballots in Frio County for nearly 30 years, charging candidates between $1,500 and $2,500 for services including collecting ballots and transporting voters.
Court documents indicate Camacho and Ramirez — identified as sisters — targeted elderly residents in a Pearsall subdivision in October 2022. The woman allegedly smuggled ballots under her shirt and switched vehicles to avoid detection. Investigators allege Segura shared information on ballot mailing and delivery schedules with her. . . .
Gabe Whisnant, “What Is Vote Harvesting? Officials Indicted in Texas AG Ken Paxton’s Probe,” Newsweek, May 7, 2025.
“I think this is all part of voter suppression,” said Lidia Martinez, who was 87 last year when nine officers, some with guns, raided her home in San Antonio. She was not among the indicted.
Edgar Sandoval, “Texas Attorney General Announces Vote Fraud and ‘Harvesting’ Charges,” New York Times, May 7, 2025.
University of Notre Dame law professor Derek Muller said a small number of illegal voting activity cases are prosecuted around the country every year, and they “tend to be isolated incidents and not at large scale.” They are rarely at a level that would affect the outcome of a race, he said. . . .
Mariana Alfaro, Patrick Marley and Yvonne Wingett Sanchez, “Texas AG says judge, other officials arrested for ‘vote harvesting’ crimes,” Washington Post, May 8, 2025.
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