Census shows voter problems in several counties

Kurt Erickson ; JG/T-C Springfield Bureau
Times-Courier
April 20, 2011

SPRINGFIELD - More than 10 percent of Illinois' 102 counties have more registered voters than residents who are old enough to vote, according to a new report.

The 14 counties, as well as the board governing elections in East St. Louis, have been notified of the problem by state election regulators following the release of new U.S. Census Bureau population figures earlier this year.

Among counties grappling with the disparity is Alexander County, which has experienced voter fraud issues in the past. Numbers released by the Illinois State Board of Elections show there are 7,806 registered voters in a county that has just 6,353 residents age 18 or older.

Other counties facing similar circumstances include Hardin, Jasper, Massac, Mercer, Pulaski, Rock Island and Union.

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. County clerks in the affected counties found a variety of reasons for their lack of action on removing ineligible voters.

Massac County Clerk John Taylor said the most common denominator among counties is lack of money.

"For financial reasons, I have not been able to do a purge for the last four years," Taylor said Tuesday.

Counties that need financial assistance may be able to receive federal grants, but even that process could become tricky in certain cash-strapped regions where counties would have to come up with the money first and then wait to be reimbursed.

"It's an unfortunate situation," Taylor said.

In Alexander County, for example, high turnover in the county clerk's office was cited as one reason ineligible voters had not been weeded out of the rolls.

Some county officials say they've either already brought the numbers down or will be doing so in the immediate future.

In Rock Island County, a purge of the rolls will occur as part of the once-per-decade redistricting process now under way. According to the state board, there are more than 11,500 people listed as voters who may be deceased or no longer living in the county.

In Jasper County, figures show the voter rolls were out of whack by about 90 people. Some of those ineligible voters already have been removed from the rolls.

"Here we pretty much know everybody so we know where to hunt," said Jasper County Clerk Linda Huth. "But, it is tedious and it takes money. Nobody has any extra money."

Taylor said he's not overly worried that ineligible voters could be committing voter fraud by going to the polls in Massac County on election day.

"I have seen very little existence of fraud. Most people know each other and if something's going on, they tell me pretty quick," Taylor said.

Memo: Published in the Journal Gazette and Times-Courier