Link to Original Story

Analysis: More voters than residents in Alexander County

BY KURT ERICKSON
The Southern Springfield Bureau

SPRINGFIELD - Illinois' southernmost county has more registered voters than it has residents who are old enough to vote, according to a Lee Springfield Bureau analysis.

Alexander County, which has experienced voter fraud issues in the past, lists 7,859 registered and active voters, based on numbers provided by the Illinois State Board of Elections.

But, U.S. Census Bureau figures and school enrollment totals provided by the Illinois State Board of Education show there are only about 7,100 residents in the county who are over the age of 18.

The fact there are apparently more than 750 more registered voters than eligible residents has sparked some county residents to raise questions.

"We have absolutely no integrity within our voter rolls, and our elections are highly suspect," said Curtis Miller, a Tamms resident who was recently elected as a Republican precinct committeeman.

Under state election law, county clerks and other local election officials are supposed to purge voter rolls to eliminate people who have died or moved out of the county. But, high turnover in the county clerk's office in Alexander County is being blamed for a failure to weed out ineligible voters.

County Clerk Francis Lee said she's only been in office since November 2009 and hasn't had enough time to implement a county-wide purge.

But, Lee said, "It is my intention to get it cleaned up."

The state board of elections is aware of the irregularities, but a spokesman said there is no investigation currently underway. And, the Illinois Attorney General's office also is not actively pursuing an inquiry into the situation, said spokesman Scott Mulford.

Part of the problem stems from a high turnover rate of election officials in the county. The county also has been plagued by allegations of corruption in the past. Former clerk Louis Maze was indicted for vote fraud stemming from an incident in 2000.

Lee said she believes there are safeguards in place that could help the county avoid any problems in the upcoming election Nov. 2.

For example, she said election judges at various polling places must check voter identification before people can cast their ballots.

"There are no dead people voting in Alexander County," Lee said.