Is voter fraud a problem in the US?

NoSays it is contested

I'll look into current evidence on how often voter fraud occurs in the U.S.

Voter fraud does exist in the United States, but extensive research and audits conclude it is not a widespread problem and has not altered modern federal election outcomes.

How common is it?

Measured by prosecutions, convictions and sustained findings, documented voter fraud rates fall far below one hundredth of a percent. Common cited figures include:

•0.0000845% in an Arizona sample, ~0.000039% in a Pennsylvania long-run sample

•A Massachusetts Institute of Technology study of mail ballots over two decades called mail-in fraud “exceedingly rare” and reported rates on the order of 0.00006 percent of votes nationally

•Cases of mail voting fraud are very rare, accounting for only 0.000043% of total mail ballots cast, or about four cases out of every 10 million mail votes

•A Brennan Center analysis estimated fraud rates between roughly 0.0003% and 0.0025% based on decades of data

•Brookings review of Heritage Foundation case data and other academic samples summarize rates on the order of 0.00000017% to roughly 0.000096%, described as “extremely rare” and insufficient to affect outcomes

Comprehensive reviews put the rate of voter fraud in federal contests at essentially zero for practical purposes, with investigators finding only a few hundred potential problematic votes across tens of millions cast in recent presidential contests

Scholars who have compiled proven cases across decades conclude instances are extremely uncommon relative to hundreds of millions of ballots cast, with only a tiny handful of prosecutable cases in federal elections and none that shifted outcomes in key contests examined

What do databases show?

•Heritage Foundation’s database of documented cases includes roughly 1,400–1,600 cases over many decades. One 2026 congressional review found 1,546 election fraud cases accumulated over decades, but only 68 involving noncitizen voting

•Heritage's historical record tallied 1,561 instances leading to 1,325 convictions

•A Brennan Center examination covering 23.5 million votes found roughly 30 suspected incidents of noncitizen voting, about 0.0001 percent, with 40 of 42 jurisdictions reporting none at all

•When analyzing the Heritage database of about 1,100 instances, the Brennan Center found only 10 cases involving in-person voter-impersonation fraud and only 41 involving noncitizen voting, numbers described as microscopic compared to billions of ballots cast. A similar analysis found impersonation fraud rates between 0.0003% and 0.0025%

•The Heritage database includes 100 cases of noncitizens voting from 1982 to 2025

Overall, Heritage’s database lists roughly 1,300 to 1,600 proven instances since 1982, out of tens of billions of votes cast

What types of fraud occur?

Federal law prohibits various forms of election fraud, such as vote buying, multiple voting, voting by ineligible individuals, submission of fraudulent ballots or registrations, destruction of ballots, voter intimidation, and alteration of votes

Other categories include:

•Fraud by the voter: giving false information when registering to vote such as false citizenship claims

•Fraud by an elections/campaign official: changing a ballot tally or engaging in other corrupt behavior

•Election fraud covering activities such as registering someone to vote and forging their signature, filling out an absentee ballot for someone who has died or moved away, voting while ineligible, or pretending to be someone else at the polling place

•Broader federal categories: campaign finance crimes, voter/ballot fraud, and civil rights violations

What do election security officials say?

The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has consistently stated that it found no evidence of foreign interference that altered the outcomes of the 2020 or 2024 presidential elections.

CISA called the 2020 election “the most secure in American history,” with no evidence that voting systems deleted, lost or compromised votes, and found “no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes, or was in any way compromised”. CISA also said there was “no evidence of any malicious activity” affecting the integrity of the 2024 elections.

In December 2020, Attorney General William Barr stated: “To date, we have not seen fraud on a scale that could have affected a different outcome in the election”. Academic and law enforcement reviews have also concluded documented cases of non-citizen voting and mail-in ballot fraud are rare and insufficient to affect election results.

Why does perception differ?

Despite low measured rates, nearly half of Americans believe there is a problem. Polling found Americans almost evenly divided on whether people committing voter fraud (26%) or eligible voters being prevented from voting (30%) is a more widespread problem, with Republicans far more concerned about fraud and Democrats more concerned about voter suppression.

Arguments about voter fraud are usually based on anecdotes, while estimates of inaccurate voter registrations — such as Pew Research Center's estimate that about 24 million — one of every eight — voter registrations are no longer valid or are significantly inaccurate — are sometimes cited out of context. Inaccurate registrations due to people moving or dying do not equal fraudulent votes.

Is it never a problem?

Election officials note that any fraud is pursued criminally, and isolated cases — such as local races involving vote-buying, ballot harvesting, or double voting — do result in prosecutions and can affect close local contests. However, studies by organizations across the political spectrum, including the Brennan Center for Justice and the Heritage Foundation, consistently show fraud in U.S. elections, including via absentee ballots, is extremely rare.

The bottom line across reputable sources is that voter fraud occurs at rates on the order of hundred-thousandths to millionths of a percent, and most experts describe the phenomenon as “extremely rare”.

Is voter fraud a problem in the US?

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