State police in Indiana are investigating after a voter registration group was suspected to have used fraud in an attempt to register voters.
The Indiana Voter Registration Project, a little-known organization, was found to have submitted at least 10 forms with fraudulent information, Indiana State Police spokesman Dave Bursten told the Indianapolis Star. The group has submitted about 28,000 forms in total.
The investigation started about three weeks ago in Hendricks County after election staff found signatures that didn’t match and forms that were incomplete, according to Fox59. Similar information was later found in Marion County.
If forms were filed fraudulently, it could allow multiple votes from the same name or for absentee ballots to be filed without the voter’s knowledge or consent.
Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson urged voters with concerns to check their registration status online or at their county clerk’s office, UPI reported. “Election integrity and security is a top priority,” Lawson said. “We are working with the state police to ensure this matter is addressed quickly.”
The Indiana Voter Registration Project claims that it checked forms carefully once voters filled them out and notified voters of any discrepancies. UPI reported that spokeswoman Christy Setzer said, “We sincerely hope that no one in a partisan elected position is using their office in an effort to make it harder for the people of Indiana to vote.” Setzer refused to answer questions about how the nonpartisan group is funded and workers are paid.
The project did not answer any questions or requests for comment and appeared to be shut down early Thursday afternoon. UPI reported that employees had been told not to speak to the press.