Ken Blackwell's warning about voter fraud

The former secretary of state of Ohio, who has a shabby record when it comes to protecting the integrity of elections, is now lecturing others.

Published October 6, 2008 11:11PM (EDT)

Talk about nerve: Ken Blackwell has written an opinion column for the New York Post that features dire warnings about the possibility that voter fraud will affect this election.

"The right to vote is a fundamental right," Blackwell -- joined by co-author Ken Klukowski, writes. "It is violated when a qualified voter is denied his or her vote -- and also when a legal vote is canceled out by an illegal vote.

"Voter fraud is a crime against democracy itself, because voting is the only means by which the people choose those who govern them -- and hold them accountable. The voting process therefore deserves the most stringent protections to make sure that every legal vote is counted, and that only legal votes are counted.

And yes, in case you were curious, that's the same Ken Blackwell who was Ohio's secretary of state in 2004. The same Ken Blackwell who worked himself into infamy by actually directing his office to reject voter registrations based on the weight of the paper used. And yes, the same Ken Blackwell who was embarrassed in 2006, when he lost the race to be his state's governor by 23 percentage points -- but only after his supporters challenged the eligibility of Blackwell's opponent.


By Alex Koppelman

Alex Koppelman is a staff writer for Salon.

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