Immigration law may also be used to manipulate electoral demography. One example of this was the 1986–1990 Homes for votes scandal in the City of Westminster in England under Shirley Porter. If people eligible for public housing are likely to vote for a particular party, then they can either be concentrated into one area, thus making their votes count for less, or moved into marginal seats, where they may tip the balance towards their preferred party. However, such laws can also be used for demographic manipulation as they tend to disenfranchise those with no fixed address, such as the homeless, travelers, Roma, students (studying full-time away from home), and some casual workers.Īnother strategy is to permanently move people into an electoral district, usually through public housing. Many countries prevent this with rules stipulating that a voter must have lived in an electoral district for a minimum period (for example, six months) in order to be eligible to vote there. One way of doing this is to move a large number of voters into the electorate prior to an election, for example by temporarily assigning them land or lodging them in flophouses. In many cases, it is possible for authorities to artificially control the composition of an electorate in order to produce a foregone result. Artificial migration or party membership Deliberate manipulation of election outcomes is widely considered a violation of the principles of democracy. The legality of this type of manipulation varies across jurisdictions. 5.6 Statistical indicators and election forensicsĮlectorate manipulation Part of the Politics seriesĮlectoral fraud can occur in advance of voting if the composition of the electorate is altered.3.6 Tampering with electronic voting systems.3.5 Destruction or invalidation of ballots.3.2.1 In Major League Baseball's All Star Game.3.1 Misleading or confusing ballot papers.1.1 Artificial migration or party membership.Even if the outcome is not affected, the revelation of fraud can reduce voters' confidence in democracy. In a narrow election, a small amount of fraud may suffice to change the result. In national elections, successful electoral fraud on a sufficient scale can have the effect of a coup d'état, protest or corruption of democracy. Show elections, featuring only one candidate, are sometimes classified as electoral fraud, although they may comply with the law and are presented more as referendums/plebiscites. Although technically the term "electoral fraud" covers only those acts which are illegal, the term is sometimes used to describe acts which are legal, but considered morally unacceptable, outside the spirit of an election or in violation of the principles of democracy. What exactly constitutes electoral fraud varies from country to country.Įlectoral legislation outlaws many kinds of election fraud, but other practices violate general laws, such as those banning assault, harassment or libel. It differs from but often goes hand-in-hand with voter suppression. Contact Editor Sarah Vogelsong for questions: Follow Virginia Mercury on Facebook and Twitter.Illegal interference with the process of an election Political corruptionĮlectoral fraud, sometimes referred to as election manipulation, voter fraud or vote rigging, involves illegal interference with the process of an election, either by increasing the vote share of a favored candidate, depressing the vote share of rival candidates, or both. Virginia Mercury maintains editorial independence. Virginia Mercury is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Glenn Youngkin’s administration announced their newest plans for how they intend to withdraw Virginia from a regional carbon market Wednesday, a move critics say is not allowed by law, would drain important state programs of funding and would hurt the fight against climate change.” By John Cole, Virginia Mercury September 7, 2022įrom The Virginia Mercury: “Gov.
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