10/02/2026
ICYMI: Guest Column in Huron Daily Tribune, Sept 26, 2026
REST ASSURED:Your Ballot is Safe and Secure
Finally, voting by mail will go on for the 2026 general election despite months of legal wrangling and a series of federal court orders blocking the administration’s attempts to eliminate it. Even though the president himself has voted by mail in the past several elections, he has falsely claimed that hundreds of thousands of noncitizens have registered to vote and are voting in federal elections.
After years of alleging massive noncitizen registration and voter fraud, the president ordered the United States Postal Service(USPS) to adopt a rule requiring states to provide voter lists to compare ballot envelopes, supposedly to root out voter fraud. The U.S. Supreme Court blocked the rule until further review, finding that it is likely illegal and unconstitutional.
Article 1, Section 4, of the Constitution of the United States of America explicitly vests the States with the authority to administer federal elections: The Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and Representatives shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof….
Following a hearing challenging the USPS rule, U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols determined that “the Federal Government does not point to any record evidence that there will be significant fraud in the upcoming elections….” if the USPS rule is not in place. Other federal judges made similar findings before the Supreme Court put the rule on hold last Monday.
The Bipartisan Policy Center notes that “when investigating noncitizen voting it is important to distinguish between voter registration and casting a ballot. Noncitizen registration is already rare, and noncitizen voting is even less common.” For example, the National Association of Secretaries of State, whose Republican-majority membership includes the chief elections officers of 40 states, said “they are not aware of any evidence that supports the voter fraud claims made by President Trump.”
Federal law and the law of every state already prohibit noncitizens from registering to vote or voting in elections. There are significant penalties for violating these laws and it is relatively easy to get caught (Brennan Center for Justice).
To register to vote in Michigan, you must:
• Be a Michigan resident (established by supporting documents).
• Be U.S. citizen (established by supporting documents).
• Be at least 17.5 years of age when registering and 18 years of age by Election Day.
• Not be currently serving a sentence in jail or prison.
An analysis by the Heritage Foundation identified just 129 proven incidents of non-citizens registering to vote or cast a ballot in a 21-year period involving hundreds of millions of ballots. The American Bar Association (ABA), after reviewing various studies that have been conducted over the last 10 years, has determined that there are only trivial amounts of fraud in our elections, and that while voting fraud has been shown in rare individual cases, the effect is infinitesimal and incapable of swaying election results.
In November 2020 shortly after the Presidential election, the top Federal government officials responsible for election security issued a joint statement that the 2020 election “was the most secure in American history.”
The ABA also determined that mail-in voting is secure and highly resistant to fraud. Mail-in voting has been in use since the 1860’s when it helped 150,000 soldiers cast ballots during the Civil War. Mail ballot fraud is exceedingly rare in part because states have systems in place to prevent forgery, theft and voter fraud.
Today, mail-in voting is used by countless citizens who travel, suffer illness, have mobility issues, or have legitimate concerns about confusing and crowded polling centers. It has enabled greater participation among our citizens – a central goal for any strong democracy.
Allegations of voter fraud and scare tactics have been pushed for years by partisans seeking to justify proof-of-citizenship and other restrictive ID requirements as a condition of voting, despite the fact that registration (which requires citizenship) is already confirmed by election officials before and after elections.
Mail-in voting is on! You can also vote early in person, in person at the polling place on Election Day, and by using a drop box at the polling place. Rest assured: Your ballot is safe and secure.
Charles Henry, Lake Township
Huron County Democratic Party
