Lawmakers Seek Election Integrity

U.S. Senator Josh Hawley has introduced a bill to ban ballot harvesting in federal elections. The measure, according to the Missouri Republican, is designed to protect election integrity in response to disputes during the 2020 presidential election. The legislation seeks to improve the ability of campaigns to observe vote counting operations, require mail-in or absentee ballots to be counted and recorded immediately, and require that ballot counting, once begun, continue until completed.

Hawley stressed that “The debacle of the 2020 election has made clear that serious reforms are needed to protect the integrity of our elections. The American people deserve transparency—that means banning ballot harvesting, empowering poll watchers, and taking steps to ensure that all legally cast ballots are accounted for. The confusion and controversy of [the 2020 election] is not acceptable, Congress must take action to Ban ballot harvesting in federal elections and incentivize states to do the same.”

Specifically, the measure would: require that at least two representatives of each campaign be permitted to observe polls and vote counting operations; require mail-in or absentee ballots to be counted and recorded immediately upon receipt, with no results to be disclosed until after the closure of polling places on the date of an election; require that ballot counting, once begun, continue until completed—no delays or pauses except in the event of imminent emergency; require states to maintain round-the-clock video surveillance monitoring of absentee ballot drop boxes, with unedited footage to be made available upon request to members of the public at no charge; and impose requirements, adapted from existing Florida law, that mandate the auditing of voting systems and the reporting in advance of preparations made for upcoming general elections.

A companion bill has been introduced in the House by Rep. Mike Kelly, a Pennsylvania Republican. Kelly described the need for his measure, H.R. 8753, designated as the Protect Election Integrity Act of 2020: “As our nation waits patiently for the official results of the 2020 presidential election, one thing has become abundantly clear: the administration of the election in several states has caused millions of Americans to lose faith in our electoral system,” said Kelly. “The Protect Election Integrity Act of 2020 will help restore their trust, which is essential to the health of our republic.”

Trump campaign attorneys have filed more than 20 legal challenges in several states, in addition to demanding recounts in other jurisdictions. U.S. Attorney General William Barr has authorized federal prosecutors to probe alleged irregularities.

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Due to the serious irregularities in the 2020 campaign, U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr has authorized the United States Department of Justice to review the serious allegations. In a letter to senior DOJ staff, Barr stated: “Now that the voting has concluded, it is imperative that the American people can trust that our elections were conducted in such a way that the outcomes accurately reflect the will of the voters. Although the States have the primary responsibility to conduct and supervise elections under our Constitution and the laws enacted by Congress, the United States Department of Justice has an obligation to ensure that federal elections are conducted in such a way that the American people can have full confidence in their electoral process and their government.”

The twin bills reflect widespread unease over a number of challenges to electoral integrity by both Republicans and independent analysts.

The Gatestone Institute has concentrated on problems with the balloting software used in many state. Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani, cited by Gatestone, emphasizes that the software that was widely used was developed by a company called Smartmatic, a company that was founded by Hugo Chávez, and by his two allies who still own it. “It’s been used to cheat in elections in South America. It was banned by the United States about a decade ago. It’s come back now as a subcontractor to other companies to sort of hide in the weeds… Finally, if you want to get down to the votes, let’s pick Pennsylvania. We have identified 632,000 illegal votes. It’s enough to have the president win the state by 300,000, which is actually what he won it by, if you get that Smartmatic machine out.”

Illustration: Hugo Chavez, whose software was used in some states in the 2020 U.S. Presidential election (pixabay)

Quick Analysis

Russia Expanding Aggression

President Putin is using more than one pathway to enter Europe and undermine the West. While most of the world watches the conflict he initiated in Ukraine, the Russian government is actively pursuing a second front in a little noticed campaign in Cyprus. Although the corrupt Cypriot government ended its issuance of “golden passports” in 2020, Russian intelligence is functioning quietly there to transform this EU country into a Russian beachhead of illicit economic activity aimed at penetrating the capitalist West, according to Paul Goble of the Jamestown Foundation. Cyprus is not a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) nor does it receive as much attention as those countries who are member states. That adds to its allure as a prime location for Russia to attempt to gain a European foothold. Last week a NATO report, cited in the European Daily Monitor, noted that Russian intelligence agents have been plotting to destroy European infrastructure across the continent to disrupt states supporting Ukraine. It further suggests that Putin’s immediate goal is to lay the framework for a future move against the security organization’s members. Hungary, in particular, is another country garnering Moscow’s attention as it opposes the Western response to Russian aggression. Russia is focusing its intelligence efforts on other European, non-NATO member countries in addition to Cyprus, including Austria, Malta, and Ireland. The NATO report suggests that Moscow has had success in disseminating the Russian political narrative in these states to advance its campaign against the West. The island of Cyprus is proving to be a good target for Moscow as it is an ethnically divided island that is part of the EU since 2004. Northern Cyprus, officially called the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), is a de facto state that is only recognized by Turkey. The division precludes it from joining NATO. As Goble suggests, “it offers Russia troubled waters in which to fish.” Over the last 20 years, he points out, Cyprus’ challenges have opened it to a massive influx of Russian citizens, who now comprise approximately 10 percent of the island state’s population. Over 2,900 residents are Russians who entered until the “golden passport” program that allowed wealthy or well-connected Russians to move to Cyprus. It also provided them with documentation to travel freely throughout Europe! Although less visible on the world’s radar than the war in Ukraine, Moscow is also being helped by Cyprus’ banks opposition to seizing Russian assets and its support in evading Western sanctions. Russia has placed tens of billions of US Dollars there for money laundering. It has been more than two years since a single Russian “diplomat” has been deported and, in fact, the Embassy has grown to over 300 staffers on this tiny island state of only 1.2 million people. The Russian embassy in Nicosia has advanced communications antennae on its roof and opened a consulate on the northern end of the island. Moscow’s Ambassador, Mura Zyazikov, is a lieutenant general in the FSB with no diplomatic experience. The FSB, SVR (Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service), and GRU are actively using the island as a base of operations against NATO Member states, Israel, and other Western allies. Moscow backs pro-Russian political parties who in turn influence Cypriot decisions on education, language, and other issues. “Dmitry Khmelnitsky of the Dossier Center says that its findings should be of concern not only to Cyprus but to the West as a whole. Those who ignore what Moscow is doing because Cyprus does not follow the EU sanctions regime are missing something critical,” says Goble. “Cyprus does not seek to get rid of Russian agents and does not interfere with their work,” Khmelnitsky concludes, “despite the fact that what the Kremlin is doing is so clearly visible.” This has an impact not only on the small island but on the EU, NATO, and the West in general. Earlier this year the Moscow Times reported that when the FBI became more interested in Russian business and oligarchs in Cyprus, at least 10 of the major Russian businesses operating there left. Despite the government of Cyprus’ vow to implement plans for new sanctions against Russia, it continues to ignore Putin’s atrocities in Ukraine and to shield the wealth of the 50,000 wealthy Russian citizens and oligarchs residing there. Daria Novak served in the U.S. State Dept. Illustration: Pixabay