{"id":3247250,"date":"2023-04-30T11:26:26","date_gmt":"2023-04-30T16:26:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nbcdfw.com\/news\/national-international\/gop-election-officials-walking-fine-line-on-fraud-integrity\/3247250\/"},"modified":"2023-04-30T11:32:33","modified_gmt":"2023-04-30T16:32:33","slug":"gop-election-officials-walking-fine-line-on-fraud-integrity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nbcdfw.com\/news\/national-international\/gop-election-officials-walking-fine-line-on-fraud-integrity\/3247250\/","title":{"rendered":"GOP Election Officials Walk Fine Line on Fraud, Integrity"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Republican secretaries of state in Ohio, West Virginia and Missouri have promoted their states\u2019 elections<\/a> as fair and secure. Yet each also is navigating a fine line on how to address election fraud conspiracies as they gear up campaigns for U.S. Senate or governor in 2024. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The split-screen messaging of Ohio\u2019s Frank LaRose, West Virginia\u2019s Mac Warner and Missouri\u2019s Jay Ashcroft shows just how deeply election lies have burrowed into the Republican Party, where more than half of voters believe Democrat Joe Biden was not legitimately elected president. Even election officials who tout running clean elections at home are routinely pushing for more voting restrictions and additional scrutiny on the process as they prepare to face GOP primary voters next year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All three withdrew their states last month from the Electronic Registration Information Center, a bipartisan, multistate effort to ensure accurate voter lists. LaRose did so less than a month after calling the group \u201cone of the best fraud-fighting tools that we have\u201d and vowing to maintain Ohio’s membership. He defied backlash against the organization stoked by former President Donald Trump<\/a> before relenting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The three also have supported increased voter restrictions in their states \u2014 part of a national trend for Republicans that they say is intend to boost public confidence. Those bills impose new voter ID requirements, shrink windows for processing ballots or ease the ability to consolidate voting precincts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Republicans aspiring to higher office, “it\u2019s kind of hard to skip some of these things if you want to succeed\u201d in GOP primaries, said Nancy Martorano Miller, an associate professor of political science at the University of Dayton. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That includes appearing responsive to Republican voters’ belief in Trump’s false claims of a stolen 2020 presidential election at the same time they promote the job they’re doing in their own states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou\u2019re secretary of state, so it\u2019s your job to run elections and make sure they\u2019re fraud-fee,\u201d Martorano Miller said. \u201cYou\u2019re kind of stuck between, \u2018I need to show I\u2019m doing these things to battle fraud,’ but at the same time, ‘if I make it seem like there\u2019s too much fraud, it looks like I\u2019m not doing my job.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Warner and Ashcroft have announced campaigns for governor while LaRose is considering a U.S. Senate run.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When he unveiled legislation in February aimed at standardizing election data, LaRose said it was all about providing transparency so voters would “have confidence in knowing that when the election is over, that the true voice of the people was heard.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A couple weeks later, he was sitting on an elections panel titled \u201cThey Stole It From Us Legally\u201d at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LaRose’s spokesperson said the panel was renamed at the last minute, but the secretary used the opportunity to promote the integrity of Ohio elections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cVoter fraud is exceedingly rare in Ohio because we take election security very seriously, aggressively pursue those who commit it and refer the potential crime to the attorney general and county prosecutors,\u201d Rob Nichols said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Similarly, Ashcroft has said Missouri has secure elections and praised Gov. Mike Parson for signing a package of election law changes last year that included a new photo ID requirement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMissouri voters are passionate about their right to vote,” he said. “This bill makes Missouri elections safer and more transparent, which instills confidence and trust.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then in January, Ashcroft hosted a meeting at his office with MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, a conspiracy theorist who travels the country fueling distrust in elections. The meeting alarmed some voting rights advocates in the state. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Warner has defended Trump\u2019s false claims of a fraudulent 2020 election and demonstrated alongside \u201cStop the Steal\u201d protesters, while also promoting the integrity of West Virginia’s elections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said in a recent interview that he is working to strike a balance between those on the right who believe the 2020 election was stolen and those on the left who argue \u201cthere\u2019s nothing to see here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe truth is obviously somewhere in the middle,\u201d he said, while adding: \u201cI will admit Biden won the election, but did he do it legitimately? Or did that happen outside the election laws that legislatures in certain states had put in place? That\u2019s where I balk and say no.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Warner said he would like to see an \u201cafter-action review\u201d of the 2020 election, like those conducted in the military, to ease citizens\u2019 minds and make elections better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump and others have criticized the expansion of mail voting in 2020 in the COVID-19 pandemic, although there is no evidence of any widespread fraud and multiple reviews in the battleground states where Trump contested his loss have upheld the results. The House committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol found that Trump advisers and administration officials repeatedly debunked allegations of fraud in the weeks after the 2020 election, but Trump continued to push the lies, anyway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a recently settled defamation case against Fox News, a Delaware Superior Court judge ruled it was \u201cCRYSTAL clear\u201d that none of the claims repeatedly aired on the network about Dominion Voting Systems machines rigging votes against Trump was true.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Christopher McKnight Nichols, an Ohio State University professor of history, said it\u2019s confusing for voters when secretaries of state claim elections they run are fair but then raise questions or hint at problems, without evidence, about elections elsewhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An earlier era of Republicans \u201cabsolutely would have been chagrined, embarrassed, and perhaps pushed out fellow Republicans who flip-flopped so radically, or promoted lies,\u201d he said. “Their brand was the principled and consistent politician.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Ohio, LaRose spent years assuring the public that voter fraud represents a tiny fraction of Ohio’s cast ballots and that election tallies were nearly perfect. Then during his reelection campaign last year, he said Trump “is right to say that voter fraud is a serious problem\u201d and blamed the mainstream media for \u201ctrying to minimize voter fraud to suit their narrative.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In October, he joined a national Republican trend by opening a unit to investigate election law violations in Ohio, among other duties. He said that day that Ohio has a \u201cstrong national reputation for secure, accurate and accessible elections\u201d \u2014 but added that anything short of \u201cabsolute confidence\u201d in election integrity \u201cweakens the very foundation of our democracy.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Republican secretaries of state in Ohio, West Virginia and Missouri all have promoted their states\u2019 elections as fair and secure while navigating a fine line on how to address election fraud conspiracies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":144,"featured_media":5707269,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":"\"\"","apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"syndicated_id":"1:1:8143422","should_nationalize":false,"nbc_subtitle":"Officials aspiring to higher office defend their state elections as safe while addressing election fraud conspiracies","nbc_first_published_date":"","nbc_prevent_modified_update":false,"nbc_linkout_title":"","nbc_linkout_url":"","nbc_linkout_excerpt_link":"","nbc_primary_category_id":288,"nbc_primary_tag_id":378089,"nbc_alexa_brief":"","nbc_social_page_title":"Defending State Elections While Addressing Conspiracies","nbc_page_title":"GOP Election Officials Walk Fine Line on Election Conspiracies","nbc_seo_description":"The Republican secretaries of state in Ohio, West Virginia and Missouri have promoted their states\u2019 elections as fair and secure. Yet each also is navigating a fine line on how to address election fraud conspiracies as they gear up campaigns for U.S. Senate or governor in 2024.","nbc_social_description":"The Republican secretaries of state in Ohio, West Virginia and Missouri have promoted their states\u2019 elections as fair and secure. Yet each also is navigating a fine line on how to address election fraud conspiracies as they gear up campaigns for U.S. Senate or governor in 2024.","nbc_national_headline":"","entities":"","lede_video_id":"","lead_embed_url":"","featured_media_caption":"","nbc_canonical_market":"5","nbc_canonical_url":"","nbc_hide_from_recirculation":"","nbc_hide_from_search":"","dark_mode":"","title_below":"","disable_copyright":"","copyright_override":"","nbc_syndication_category":"1:1:190","nbc_national_collections":[],"nopreroll":false,"ninja_forms_form":"","sst_source_id":"","nbc_disable_legacy_embeds":false,"nbc_legacy_processEmbedsFirst":"","cnbc_logo":"","cnbc_linkout":"","nbc_feed_loader_prevent_updates":"","post_video_prompt":"","should_automatic_app_promotion":"1","should_automatic_app_ad":"1","nbc_checkout_experience_enabled":false,"should_linkout_to_syndication_parent":"","cnbc_data_hash":"","sponsor_image":0,"sponsor_url":"","rsn_disable_insider":false,"nbc_updated_post_date":"","feed_remote_id":"ap_17e37fd9db4269b3adedab8c37e75035","feed_thumbnail_url":""},"categories":[1166],"tags":[378089],"nbc_push_tag":[],"sensitivity":[],"collection":[],"source":"AP - Associated Press","prepublish_checks":{"nbc\/require-category":{"status":"complete","message":"Article has categories.","data":null},"nbc\/require-tag":{"status":"complete","message":"Article has tags.","data":null},"nbc\/validate-lead-embed":{"status":"complete","message":"Lead Embed empty.","data":null},"nbc\/published-lead-video":{"status":"complete","message":"Article does not have lead video.","data":null},"nbc\/page-slug":{"status":"complete","message":"Post is not a page.","data":null}},"apple_news_notices":[],"network_object_id":"1:8:3247250","post_brand":"NBC","rights":{"1:1":0,"1:2":0,"1:3":0,"1:4":0,"1:5":0,"1:6":0,"1:7":0,"1:8":1,"1:9":0,"1:10":0,"1:11":0,"1:12":0,"1:13":0,"1:14":0,"1:15":0,"1:16":0,"1:17":0,"1:18":0,"1:19":0,"1:20":0,"1:21":0,"1:22":0,"1:23":0,"1:24":0,"1:25":0,"1:26":0,"1:27":0,"1:28":0,"1:29":0,"1:30":0,"1:31":0,"1:32":0,"1:33":0,"1:34":0,"1:35":0,"1:36":0,"1:37":0,"1:38":0,"1:41":0,"1:42":0,"1:43":0,"1:44":0,"1:45":0,"1:46":0,"1:47":0,"1:48":0,"1:49":0,"1:50":0,"1:51":0},"syndication_rights":{"1:1":0,"1:2":0,"1:3":0,"1:4":0,"1:5":0,"1:6":0,"1:7":0,"1:8":1,"1:9":0,"1:10":0,"1:11":0,"1:12":0,"1:13":0,"1:14":0,"1:15":0,"1:16":0,"1:17":0,"1:18":0,"1:19":0,"1:20":0,"1:21":0,"1:22":0,"1:23":0,"1:24":0,"1:25":0,"1:26":0,"1:27":0,"1:28":0,"1:29":0,"1:30":0,"1:31":0,"1:32":0,"1:33":0,"1:34":0,"1:35":0,"1:36":0,"1:37":0,"1:38":0,"1:41":0,"1:42":0,"1:43":0,"1:44":0,"1:45":0,"1:46":0,"1:47":0,"1:48":0,"1:49":0,"1:50":0,"1:51":0},"syndication":{"nationalized":true,"syndicated":true,"syndicated_out":false,"linked":true,"id":"1:1:8143422","site_id":"1:1"},"content_blocks":[{"blockName":"nbc\/subtitle","attrs":[],"namespace":"nbc","rendered":""},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

The Republican secretaries of state in Ohio, West Virginia and Missouri have promoted their states\u2019 elections<\/a> as fair and secure. Yet each also is navigating a fine line on how to address election fraud conspiracies as they gear up campaigns for U.S. Senate or governor in 2024. <\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

The split-screen messaging of Ohio\u2019s Frank LaRose, West Virginia\u2019s Mac Warner and Missouri\u2019s Jay Ashcroft shows just how deeply election lies have burrowed into the Republican Party, where more than half of voters believe Democrat Joe Biden was not legitimately elected president. Even election officials who tout running clean elections at home are routinely pushing for more voting restrictions and additional scrutiny on the process as they prepare to face GOP primary voters next year.<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

All three withdrew their states last month from the Electronic Registration Information Center, a bipartisan, multistate effort to ensure accurate voter lists. LaRose did so less than a month after calling the group \u201cone of the best fraud-fighting tools that we have\u201d and vowing to maintain Ohio's membership. He defied backlash against the organization stoked by former President Donald Trump<\/a> before relenting.<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

The three also have supported increased voter restrictions in their states \u2014 part of a national trend for Republicans that they say is intend to boost public confidence. Those bills impose new voter ID requirements, shrink windows for processing ballots or ease the ability to consolidate voting precincts.<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

For Republicans aspiring to higher office, \"it\u2019s kind of hard to skip some of these things if you want to succeed\u201d in GOP primaries, said Nancy Martorano Miller, an associate professor of political science at the University of Dayton. <\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

That includes appearing responsive to Republican voters' belief in Trump's false claims of a stolen 2020 presidential election at the same time they promote the job they're doing in their own states.<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

\u201cYou\u2019re secretary of state, so it\u2019s your job to run elections and make sure they\u2019re fraud-fee,\u201d Martorano Miller said. \u201cYou\u2019re kind of stuck between, \u2018I need to show I\u2019m doing these things to battle fraud,' but at the same time, 'if I make it seem like there\u2019s too much fraud, it looks like I\u2019m not doing my job.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

Warner and Ashcroft have announced campaigns for governor while LaRose is considering a U.S. Senate run.<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

When he unveiled legislation in February aimed at standardizing election data, LaRose said it was all about providing transparency so voters would \"have confidence in knowing that when the election is over, that the true voice of the people was heard.\u201d<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

A couple weeks later, he was sitting on an elections panel titled \u201cThey Stole It From Us Legally\u201d at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference.<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

LaRose's spokesperson said the panel was renamed at the last minute, but the secretary used the opportunity to promote the integrity of Ohio elections.<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

\u201cVoter fraud is exceedingly rare in Ohio because we take election security very seriously, aggressively pursue those who commit it and refer the potential crime to the attorney general and county prosecutors,\u201d Rob Nichols said.<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

Similarly, Ashcroft has said Missouri has secure elections and praised Gov. Mike Parson for signing a package of election law changes last year that included a new photo ID requirement.<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

\u201cMissouri voters are passionate about their right to vote,\" he said. \"This bill makes Missouri elections safer and more transparent, which instills confidence and trust.\u201d<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

Then in January, Ashcroft hosted a meeting at his office with MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, a conspiracy theorist who travels the country fueling distrust in elections. The meeting alarmed some voting rights advocates in the state. <\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

Warner has defended Trump\u2019s false claims of a fraudulent 2020 election and demonstrated alongside \u201cStop the Steal\u201d protesters, while also promoting the integrity of West Virginia's elections.<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

He said in a recent interview that he is working to strike a balance between those on the right who believe the 2020 election was stolen and those on the left who argue \u201cthere\u2019s nothing to see here.\u201d<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

\u201cThe truth is obviously somewhere in the middle,\u201d he said, while adding: \u201cI will admit Biden won the election, but did he do it legitimately? Or did that happen outside the election laws that legislatures in certain states had put in place? That\u2019s where I balk and say no.\u201d<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

Warner said he would like to see an \u201cafter-action review\u201d of the 2020 election, like those conducted in the military, to ease citizens\u2019 minds and make elections better.<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

Trump and others have criticized the expansion of mail voting in 2020 in the COVID-19 pandemic, although there is no evidence of any widespread fraud and multiple reviews in the battleground states where Trump contested his loss have upheld the results. The House committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol found that Trump advisers and administration officials repeatedly debunked allegations of fraud in the weeks after the 2020 election, but Trump continued to push the lies, anyway.<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

In a recently settled defamation case against Fox News, a Delaware Superior Court judge ruled it was \u201cCRYSTAL clear\u201d that none of the claims repeatedly aired on the network about Dominion Voting Systems machines rigging votes against Trump was true.<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

Christopher McKnight Nichols, an Ohio State University professor of history, said it\u2019s confusing for voters when secretaries of state claim elections they run are fair but then raise questions or hint at problems, without evidence, about elections elsewhere.<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

An earlier era of Republicans \u201cabsolutely would have been chagrined, embarrassed, and perhaps pushed out fellow Republicans who flip-flopped so radically, or promoted lies,\u201d he said. \"Their brand was the principled and consistent politician.\u201d<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

In Ohio, LaRose spent years assuring the public that voter fraud represents a tiny fraction of Ohio's cast ballots and that election tallies were nearly perfect. Then during his reelection campaign last year, he said Trump \"is right to say that voter fraud is a serious problem\u201d and blamed the mainstream media for \u201ctrying to minimize voter fraud to suit their narrative.\u201d<\/p>\n"},{"blockName":"core\/paragraph","attrs":[],"namespace":"core","rendered":"\n

In October, he joined a national Republican trend by opening a unit to investigate election law violations in Ohio, among other duties. He said that day that Ohio has a \u201cstrong national reputation for secure, accurate and accessible elections\u201d \u2014 but added that anything short of \u201cabsolute confidence\u201d in election integrity \u201cweakens the very foundation of our democracy.\u201d<\/p>\n"}],"nbc_attributes":{"size":"S"},"bylines":[{"description":"","display_name":"Julie Carr Smyth","id":"","url":"","twitter":"","twitter_url":"","thumbnail":{}}],"canonical_url":"https:\/\/www.nbcboston.com\/news\/national-international\/gop-election-officials-walking-fine-line-on-fraud-integrity\/3034166\/","eyebrow":{"link":"https:\/\/www.nbcdfw.com\/tag\/elections\/","label":"Elections","sponsored":false},"object_sensitivity":"","sponsor":{"id":"","type":"","dart_url":"","dart_pixel":"","link_out_name":"","link_out_url":"","name":"","sponsor_id":"","sponsor_ad_id":"","to_homepage":false,"sponsor_expiration":"","expired":false},"object_date":"