Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) accused Democrats of trying to loosen election laws and ignoring allegations of fraud in a closely watched North Carolina House race.
McConnell, speaking from the Senate floor, argued that Democrats had “gone silent” on voter fraud in the wake of the election in North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District.
“An example of real life voter fraud is staring the country right in the face right now in North Carolina. And yet, Democrats choose this moment to propose a sprawling federal takeover of election law that would erode the integrity of our elections even further,” McConnell said.
{mosads}Democrats introduced legislation Tuesday aimed at combatting “discriminatory practices” that make it harder for some Americans to vote. But McConnell knocked the bill, referring to it as the “Democrat Politician Protection Act.”
“It contains provision after provision that would erode the protections that are supposed to ensure votes reflect the voice of the voter whose name is on the envelope,” he said.
The North Carolina State Board of Elections voted unanimously last week to call a new election in the state’s 9th District after days of hearing evidence of alleged ballot fraud.
The decision came shortly after Mark Harris, the Republican candidate in the race, expressed support for a new election, saying that allegations of a ballot tampering scheme marred the current results. Harris announced Tuesday that he would not run in the new election, citing health reasons.
McConnell, speaking from the floor, argued that Democrats had fleeced Republicans for years when they brought up concerns about voter fraud and that he had “yet to see any evidence” that Democrats were interested in tackling “ballot harvesting.”
“Legal in California, illegal in North Carolina,” McConnell added. “So maybe that helps explain [why] the voter protection act contains no effort whatsoever to crack down on ballot harvesting.”