Illinois state Rep. Dan Caulkins (R-Decatur) has a theory about why programs like the Secretary of State’s Automatic Voter Registration (AVR) system often seem to lead to chaos.
“I think every time that we try to make voting easier, every time that we try to take the responsibility of taking the initiative off of the voter to register to vote, we open up more avenues for corruption,” Caulkins told the Macon Reporter. “This problem was identified when that bill was first proposed, and the first time anything like it passed the House, Gov. [Bruce] Rauner vetoed it because it didn’t have enough safeguards. Democrats knew they were going to have problems with this bill.”
Several media outlets have reported that as many as 574 non-citizens are known to have registered through the AVR program in which the Secretary of State’s office automatically registers people to vote when they apply for an Illinois driver’s license or a state ID. Of that group, officials confirm that at least 19 non-citizens are known to have actually cast votes in 2018.
Illinois state Rep. Dan Caulkins (R-Decatur)
“And the thing is, no one at the Secretary of State’s office uncovered the problem,” Caulkins said. “My understanding is these almost 600 people came forward to ask why they were being given a voting card. It’s clear that someone in that office doesn’t know what they’re doing. The Secretary of State has been there for decades and I don’t think there is a real sense of urgency to anything that they do. I’m not sure if this isn’t just another way to make it easy for people to vote that shouldn’t be allowed to vote.”
Illinois is among just a handful of states that still allows immigrants who are non-citizens to obtain a driver’s license or state ID. In Caulkins’ mind, drastic measures need to be taken, even if it includes longtime Secretary of State Jesse White stepping down from power.
“I think the right thing would be for him to take full responsibility and not just send out an apology,” Caulkins said. “It’s clear that they have not implemented AVR in a way that insures the integrity of the vote. An honorable man would step aside and let someone take over that office that can fix the problem and deal with it in a real way. People have done the honorable thing like that for less serious offenses.”
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