Is voter fraud a problem in the US?

Voter Fraud in the US: What the Evidence Shows

This is a politically charged topic, but there's actually substantial academic and government research on it. Here's what the evidence shows:

The Research Consensus: Fraud Is Extremely Rare

Multiple independent studies across two decades have reached similar conclusions. Research conducted during the past two decades has concluded that there is no evidence of significant election fraud in contemporary American national elections.

A comprehensive review found a 2014 study by the non-partisan Government Accountability Office, which reflected a literature review of the existing research on voter fraud, noted that the studies consistently found "few instances of in-person voter fraud."

Specific Data Points

Impersonation fraud (someone pretending to be a different registered voter): A major national analysis found 2,068 alleged election-fraud cases in 50 states between 2000 and 2012, and the level of fraud was infinitesimal compared with the 146 million voters registered over the 12-year period, with the analysis finding only 10 cases of voter impersonation.

A follow-up look at contested states found zero successful prosecutions for impersonation fraud in five states from 2012–2016.

Double voting: A 2016 working paper concluded that the upper limit on double voting in the 2012 election was 0.02%, though the paper noted the incident rate was likely much lower, given audits showed many apparent double votes could be a result of measurement error.

Non-citizen voting: A 2014 paper concluded that "the likely percent of non-citizen voters in recent US elections is 0."

State-level checks: A multi-state review found a study by several secretaries of state found scant evidence of fraud — 112 instances of possible fraudulent voting in five states out of an examination of 11.5 million voter records.

2024 election data: Even the Heritage Foundation's database — often cited by those emphasizing fraud risks — shows tiny numbers relative to ballots cast. In Arizona, the percentage of fraudulent votes over the last 25 years of elections was a minuscule .0000845%, and no election outcome in the U.S. has ever been altered by ballot fraud. In Pennsylvania, Heritage data goes back 30 years and covers 32 elections with over 100 million votes cast and found only 39 cases of voter fraud.

Expert Assessment

Summarizing this body of evidence, a Brookings researcher put it plainly: "There are a few cases of election fraud in every campaign. But it's not systemic. It's not widespread."

The Gap Between Perception and Reality

Despite this evidence, public belief in widespread fraud remains significant — and that gap is itself a documented phenomenon. A 2024 survey found each of these types of election fraud is considered to be common or occasional for a third or more of American registered voters, with a cluster of four types viewed as common by at least four in ten. Researchers also found partisanship correlates strongly with endorsement of types of election fraud, with Republicans consistently more likely to state that types of election fraud are common, even when controlling for other factors.

Bottom Line

Based on the weight of academic, government, and journalistic investigation: actual voter fraud occurs, but at rates far too low to affect election outcomes, even in closely contested races. It is not a "problem" in the sense of being systemic or capable of swinging results — but belief that it's widespread is itself a significant issue affecting public trust in elections, and that belief varies sharply along partisan lines.