Illinois State Board of Elections Warns of Online Voting Scam

Attention Illinois voters: You can’t vote online in next week’s election – or any election, for that matter. That’s the message the Illinois State Board of Elections wants to convey to all voters after receiving numerous inquiries about online voting.

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Online voting is not permitted anywhere in the country, and while some states offer exemptions for military officials and U.S. citizens overseas, Illinois is not among them, according to the state agency.

Any app, website, social media account or text message that purports to offer online voting is fraudulent, according to the ISBE. Voters who receive such messages or see online content purporting to offer online voting should forward all available information to the Illinois State Board of Elections. Those reports will be forwarded to law enforcement for investigation.

During the 2016 election, the FBI detected text messages and social media campaigns that claimed to offer the ability to vote electronically or promoted incorrect information about voting, according to the ISBE.

These campaigns targeted potential voters of both major presidential campaigns and the FBI believes they were designed to suppress the vote by preventing voters from casting legitimate votes at early voting sites or on Election Day, according to an ISBE press release.

Contact Kristen Thometz: @kristenthometz | [email protected] | (773) 509-5452


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