Is voter fraud a problem in the US?

Short answer: Individual cases of voter fraud do occur each year, but the best available evidence shows they are exceedingly rare and have not been shown to alter statewide or national election outcomes in the U.S.

What the research shows

•In‑person voter impersonation (the kind photo ID laws target) has been measured at roughly 0.0003%–0.0025% of ballots, and a review by Loyola Law’s Justin Levitt found 31 credible impersonation incidents out of more than 1 billion votes cast from 2000–2014.[1]

•Analyses synthesizing many studies similarly conclude that intentional voter fraud is very rare in the U.S. today.[2]

Official assessments

•After the 2024 election cycle, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) said it had no evidence of malicious activity that had a material impact on the security or integrity of U.S. election infrastructure.[3]

Documented cases exist—but at tiny scale

•The Heritage Foundation maintains a database of proven election‑fraud cases; it catalogs hundreds to low thousands of cases across decades. Even using that dataset, a Brookings analysis concluded the numbers are minuscule relative to hundreds of millions of votes and do not indicate widespread fraud affecting federal election outcomes.[4]

Why large‑scale fraud is hard

•Safeguards such as voter‑roll checks, signature/ID verification where required, ballot tracking, audits, and cross‑checks make systemic fraud difficult; election‑science groups (e.g., the Caltech/MIT Voting Technology Project) note that officials use data analysis to detect anomalies.[2]

If you’d like, tell me the state or type of fraud you’re worried about (mail ballots, double voting, noncitizen voting, etc.), and I can share specifics.

Citations (4)

1politifact.comNews and mediaquality 0.87
Voter impersonation is rare, North Carolina’s Cooper says – PolitiFact
Backs: “In‑person voter impersonation (the kind photo ID laws target) has been measured at roughly 0.0003%–0.0025% of ballots, and a review by Loyola Law’s Justin Levitt found 31 credible impersonation incidents out of more than 1 billion votes cast from 2000–2014.”
2caltech.eduAcademic
Voter-Registration Fraud: How Election Officials Find and Prevent It - Caltech Science Exchange
Backs: “Analyses synthesizing many studies similarly conclude that intentional voter fraud is very rare in the U.S. today.”
3govdelivery.comCompanies
Statement from CISA Director Easterly on the Security of the 2024 Elections
Backs: “After the 2024 election cycle, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) said it had no evidence of malicious activity that had a material impact on the security or integrity of U.S. election infrastructure.”
4heritage.orgNonprofits and think tanks
The Heritage Foundation's Election Fraud Map
Backs: “Even using that dataset, a Brookings analysis concluded the numbers are minuscule relative to hundreds of millions of votes and do not indicate widespread fraud affecting federal election outcomes.”