An Opt-ed By Steven Hotze
The rule known as Occam’s Razor means look for the simplest explanation and solution to a problem. The problem that the Texas Legislature faces is how to provide election protection and stop vote fraud.
The easiest solution to this problem is to adopt a biometric voting system that would identify and authenticate each individual voter based upon a unique physical characteristic, such as a fingerprint, handprint, or eye biometric. House Bill 3080 by Rep. Oliverson, is a significant step in the right direction.
The alleged massive voter fraud that was uncovered during the 2020 presidential election has undermined the credibility of the election system.
In an election system, controlled by those with criminal intent, the voter doesn’t matter. It is the person who controls and counts the votes that matters. This is the way totalitarian governments operate.
Election fraud is the problem we face, and it is committed in the following ways:
- Voting in the name of legitimate voters and in the name of voters who have died or moved.
- Registering in multiple locations.
- Obtaining a fraudulent voter registration using a fake name.
- Applying for ballots by mail for fraudulent voter registration.
- Harvesting ballots by mail from nursing homes, the homeless and poor districts.
- Illegally printing and casting ballots by mail.
- Illegal registration and voting by noncitizens and felons.
- The destruction of legitimate ballots by mail.
- Manipulation of votes cast in computers, both internally and externally, either shifting votes from one candidate to another, or injecting additional votes for a specific candidate.
While we recommend 20 provisions to improve election protection and stop voter fraud, it seems that the simplest and most far-reaching solution is for Texas to adopt a biometric voting system. This would link each voter to a biometric voter registration database which contains the unique voter identification number and the encrypted biometric, such as a fingerprint, handprint, or eye biometric for each voter. Additionally, each vote should be tied to a blockchain. This would enable auditing to ensure that no vote was manipulated or changed by computer fraud.
This technology is currently available and easily adaptable to the election process. Adopting a biometric voter registration system would help eliminate fraudulent voter registration, fraudulent applications for ballot by mail, fraudulently cast ballots by mail, and fraudulent illegal voting in person.
Every legal vote must be counted, and the casting of illegal ballots must be prevented.
Conservative Republicans of Texas recommend that the following 20 provisions be adopted by the 2021 Texas Legislature. These provisions will provide election protection and stop vote fraud. The most important provision is the adoption of a biometric voter registration system.
- Adopt a biometric voter registration system.
- Purge every voter file of anyone who has died or moved out of the county, annually.
- Eliminate Early Voting because the U.S. Constitution in Article 1, Section 4 gave Congress the right to set the election date for federal elections. That date is set by federal statute, 2 U.S. Code, Section 7 as “the Tuesday next after the first Monday in the month of November.”
- Ballots by mail may only be issued on the basis of medical disability, military personnel or if the registered voter will be out of the county on election day.
- Applications for ballot by mail may only be sent by the county clerk to the voter if the voter requests it.
- Applications for ballot by mail may not be sent to voters by any organization or political campaign.
- Ballots by mail must be mailed and received by election day.
- If ballots by mail are not mailed, then they must be turned in on election day, only at the county courthouse.
- Each registered voter can only vote in their assigned precinct on election day.
- Each sign in sheet, for those registered voters who voted in person, must be checked by an alternative judge or poll watcher, to ensure that there are no forgeries. This will not be necessary if a biometric voter registration system is adopted.
- Alternate Election Judges and Poll Watchers of the various political parties on the ballot will be given full access at the precinct election location to verify that the election process is lawfully conducted.
- Drive thru voting is strictly prohibited.
- The Texas Department of Public Safety or the Texas Rangers will be on duty to respond in real time to respond to reports of voter fraud or violations of the Texas Election Code.
- Each county will report the county’s election results to the Secretary of State after a bipartisan committee in each county has agreed to the election results of that county.
- The Secretary of State will certify and report the results through a bipartisan process.
- Harvesting of ballots by mail will be 2nd degree felony punishable by a $5000 fine and up to 5 years in prison.
- All violations of the Texas Election Code must be associated with criminal or civil penalties.
- Voter’s picture identification is required for every in-person voter on election day if biometric voter registration is not adopted.
- Voters must be legal United States citizens.
- Felons may not vote.
Adopting these 20 measures will enable the Texas Legislature to create a tight rein on the voting process, so that we can ensure election protection and stop vote fraud.
The Occam’s Razor that most easily prevents vote fraud is the adoption of a biometric voting system. This is why Conservative Republicans of Texas supports House Bill 3080.