Because of Illinois' rocky political past, people sometimes make jokes about deceased residents voting, and Chicago and Cook County are generally cited as the epicenters of such fraud. According to a report by The Public Interest Legal Foundation, however, 17 counties in Illinois have more registered voters than residents who are eligible to vote, and Cook County isn't even on that list.
The organization sent out statutory notice letters to the 17 Illinois counties, plus 124 others nationwide, informing them of the discrepancies and warning them that if the records weren't rectified, the foundation could sue the counties after 90 days for a violation of the National Voter Registration Act. The Public Interest Legal Foundation also says they are asking for more information in the letters.
A representative for the organization said:
"Corrupted voter rolls provide the perfect environment for voter fraud," said J. Christian Adams, President and General Counsel of PILF. "Close elections tainted by voter fraud turned control of the United States Senate in 2009. Too much is at stake in 2016 to allow that to happen again."
There are 21 states with over-registered counties. Michigan has the most with 24, though Illinois' 17 is not far behind, in third place. A few of Illinois' other neighbors also show too many voters: Kentucky, Indiana, Iowa and Missouri were also on the list put on notice by the Public Interest Legal Foundation.
- Franklin County, 190 percent
- Pulaski County, 176 percent
- Washington County
- Henderson County, 148 percent
- Union County, 138 percent
- Rock Island County, 133 percent
- Alexander County, 130 percent
To see 10 more of the 17 counties with more registered voters than eligible residents, check out Reboot Illinois.
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