James O'Keefe and Cam Higby, prominent conservative influencers known for sting operations, were charged with felony voting fraud and identity theft after attempting to vote in Minnesota under false identities. They dressed as Muslim individuals and tried to vouch for others, falsely claiming they were registered voters, in a stunt aimed at highlighting Minnesota’s voter vouching laws. However, poll workers properly verified identities and refused to allow them to vote, demonstrating the effectiveness of existing election safeguards. The incident, which was shared online, showed that the system successfully prevented fraud by requiring sworn oaths and identity verification. Minnesota officials, including the Secretary of State, condemned the actions as illegal and ignorant of election laws. The duo has a history of similar activities, including past controversies in New Hampshire and federal property violations. Despite their claims that they were exposing election vulnerabilities, the attempt failed, with no ballots issued and no fraud proven. Critics view their actions as driven by viral content and attention-seeking, not legitimate concerns. The case serves as a clear example of how deceptive tactics backfire, reinforcing public trust in democratic processes and highlighting the consequences of election-related provocation.
You know, I love when stuff like this happens.
It is the most clear example of karma for these MAGA influencers who go out there and try to sow distrust in our elections
and try to provoke people and whatnot, and now they're facing the consequences.
A MAGA provocateur has been charged after a bonkers voting stunt.
They tried to expose voter fraud only for them to be charged with voter fraud.
I mean, wow. How many times have we seen this before?
Conservative activist James O'Keefe and another right-wing influencer have been accused of dressing up in mock Islamic garb
and attempting to cast votes at a Minnesota polling place.
James O'Keefe, the Project Veritas founder, who made a name for himself by deceptively editing videos of undercover sting operations,
and his fellow conservative content creator Cam Higby,
has been hit with felony counts of unlawful voting and identity theft,
the Hennepin County attorney announced in a press conference on Wednesday.
Quote,
Elections are the bedrock of democracy,
and their protection is one of our priorities.
Our biggest priorities, said Mary Moriarty, the top attorney in the county.
Quote,
Individuals engaging in unlawful conduct related to our elections will be held accountable.
And as they should.
I mean, these MAGA influencers genuinely try to pull these stunts for what?
Social media views and clicks?
They go out there, they are dressing in Muslim garb, Islamic garb,
and trying to pretend to be voters in the county where they are, of course, not registered to vote?
It's disgusting.
Moriarty said O'Keefe and Higby wore disguises
and filmed themselves in the county,
entering polling places,
falsely identifying themselves as four registered voters in Minneapolis.
According to videos, the pair shared online.
So they actually posted themselves committing this crime, allegedly.
During the state's August 11th primaries,
the hoax aimed to draw attention to a Minnesota voter voucher law.
Quote,
I dressed as a Muslim woman and Minneapolis poll workers were prepared to allow me
and an army of other foreigners to fraudulently vote without verifying who any of us are.
During Wednesday's press conference,
Moriarty said both men stopped short of signing the oath
before receiving their ballots, meaning that the laws worked.
That they were not allowed to vote.
I mean, what, like, oh, still she emphasized Minnesota law makes it illegal
to intentionally misrepresent one's identity when applying for a ballot,
calling the charges against the two men appropriate.
So this is the tweet that the Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty put out,
saying that polling places are the heart of democracy.
Any attempt to disrupt or deceive our elections and our election workers will not be tolerated.
And also, they said in the videos, both Mr. O'Keefe and Higby,
visited multiple precincts in Hennepin County and misrepresented their identities
by giving election judges names of registered voters in the precinct
without those voters' knowledge or permission.
So they were committing identity theft.
And they thought that what they were doing was morally right or legal.
They were using the identity of other voters
to try to deceive poll workers into getting a ballot and voting.
That is a crime.
That is a crime.
What is wrong with these people?
Why?
Why are they trying to do stuff like this?
This is the video he posted, quote,
No ID required for you and your eight friends.
I dress as a Muslim woman, and Minneapolis poll workers were prepared to allow me
and an army of other foreigners to fraudulently vote without verifying any of us.
Check this out.
Hi.
Hello.
Can I get your last name, please?
Can you spell the first three letters?
And your first name?
Kami.
Kami.
And then your address, please.
My address, I just moved.
It is 3530 Cleveland, Northeast.
Got you here.
So if you can take a look and make sure that. Can I vouch?
You should.
Yes.
We'll get you checked in first, and then we can vouch.
What is required?
Okay, yeah.
Just to. You're already pre-registered, so nothing else.
Just you'll sign something, and we'll get your phone number.
And then she vote?
Yeah.
Okay.
Do we need ID?
Nope.
No ID needed?
Her ID?
She does not need ID?
Nope.
I have also seven other people who I live with.
Can they not register?
If you live with them, you can vouch for them.
You can vouch for up to eight people.
And no ID for any?
Nope.
But after eight people, you can't vouch anymore today.
Okay.
Tomorrow?
Tomorrow, election day is over.
Okay.
And what if some of them do not live with me?
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You know them personally, and you know that they live in this precinct.
In the area.
It needs to be this precinct.
They do.
So make sure it's the same precinct.
So what we're looking at here is the system working.
It's like, it's so crazy.
This woman who is being very patient.
So shout out to her for being a poll worker.
That's obviously amazing.
And poll workers are heroes for democracy.
She is explaining the laws that are on the books.
And she's setting the limits like, hey, you can't.
You can't do more than this.
You can't vouch for more than eight people.
You can vouch for the person you're here with today or others that live with you.
And that's it.
But you need to sign something.
You need to sign an oath under the penalty of perjury that you are vouching for them.
And they are who you say they are.
And that they can actually vote.
And if you don't sign that document and you are not subjected to the penalty of perjury,
then they can't vote.
That's how the system works.
And you can see that the gentleman checking this person in who is dressing as a Muslim woman,
but is Cam Higbee.
He's asking like, you know, your address, your name and things like that.
I mean, when I voted, that's what they've done for me as well.
And I imagine something similar for you to wherever you are in the country.
It's like a secure system.
But the only reason that they are entertaining Cam Higbee and James O'Keefe in this voting
scheme is because they are using somebody else's identity who is registered to vote.
But he's I mean, it's pissing me off, man.
And here's the thing.
They actually were reported immediately.
So again, the system worked.
Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simons is speaking out about what he calls outrageous
misconduct at Minneapolis polling sites after these conservative commentators posted this
video.
In one video, at least one member of the Justice League is dressed in a burqa and another man
in the video can be heard using an accent to try to vouch for others, which we just
saw.
A group member says he was highlighting the state's vouching laws.
The video also shows a member of the group leaving a polling place after being told he
needed to sign an oath.
The video shows a worker explaining vouching rules.
They never signed the document.
James O'Keefe and Cam Higbee members of the Justice League are seen in the video that's
been shared on social media.
Simon says poll workers immediately reported the group's actions.
He went on to say the apparent goal was to cast doubt on one or more Minnesota election
laws, adding, quote, instead, they revealed their ignorance of how these laws actually
work while putting themselves in legal jeopardy.
Well said.
Well said.
And now Cam Higbee is fundraising.
He's trying to, you know, set up this link where you can send him money because he's
been charged.
By, you know, these prosecutors in Minnesota.
He says that Minnesota has filed two felony charges against me related to my burka video
in the state.
No laws were broken.
They want me in prison for exposing election vulnerabilities in their state.
It's driving me.
When this stuff happens, like I just like I'm it's karma.
But also what vulnerabilities were exposed?
You you didn't vote.
You didn't vote.
You were not given a ballot, which means the system prevented you from pretending like
you are someone else and getting the ability to cast.
A ballot, you know what I mean?
It's just somebody pointed out, not sweetie, you tried to prove fraud exists at a major
level, but all you proved is fraudsters get caught major fail.
And he also said, I am not afraid of Minnesota.
Somebody pointing out at Krasenstein saying you sound terrified, which maybe he is a little
bit.
And guess what?
They're still at it.
James O'Keefe posting two days ago, October 26th, James O'Keefe and Cam Higbee pair up
again, but this time they go undercover in the state of Florida to register to vote and
vouch for others ahead of the midterm election.
And guess what?
They were not given a ballot.
They were not given a ballot there either.
But the thing about Mr. James O'Keefe is that this is not the first time he's engaged in
shenanigans like this.
All the way back in 2012, a group says it got primary ballots with dead people's names.
The governor says group's actions should be investigated.
This was all the way back in New Hampshire in 2012.
This was, you know, James O'Keefe as well.
There was also this, this, this scenario where he was in Senator Mary Landrieu's office.
He pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of entering federal property under false pretenses
and was charged with fraudulent misdemeanor charges.
He was also charged with, excuse me, pretending, I'm sorry, to be a workman, but obviously
he was there to be a provocateur and, uh, he was actually ousted from Project Veritas,
that group he started because apparently he was leading it like a power drunk tyrant.
So to give you some context on who James O'Keefe is, who is behind this stuff, but yeah, these
MAGA, these MAGA influencers who I guess wanted views and likes, and I don't know, probably
some money out there from this as well.
They probably made a decent chunk.
Now they can put that to their legal fees, I guess.
Why are they doing stuff like this?
All they are doing is embarrassing themselves, opening themselves up to legal liability,
and looking like idiots.
Anyway, I will leave the video there, I just wanted to bring this story to you.
Thank you so much for watching.
Please make sure to subscribe down below, drop a like on the video, comment, let me
know what you think about this story and everything we just talked about.
Have an amazing rest of your day, and we will talk soon.
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Podcast Summary
Key Points:
James O'Keefe and Cam Higby, conservative influencers, were charged with felony voter fraud and identity theft for attempting to vote in Minnesota under false identities.
They dressed in mock Islamic garb and falsely claimed to be registered voters, attempting to vouch for others without their consent.
Poll workers correctly identified the deception and denied them ballots, reinforcing Minnesota’s laws requiring voter verification and oaths of truth.
The incident highlights how election systems are designed to prevent fraud by requiring identity verification and sworn statements.
Both men were reported immediately, demonstrating that the system worked as intended and exposed their stunt as illegal and unethical.
O'Keefe and Higby have continued such activities in Florida, showing a pattern of election-related provocations.
Critics argue their actions were driven by social media attention, not genuine concerns about election integrity.
The case is seen as a form of "karma," where their deceptive tactics backfired and led to legal consequences.
Summary:
James O'Keefe and Cam Higby, prominent conservative influencers known for sting operations, were charged with felony voting fraud and identity theft after attempting to vote in Minnesota under false identities. They dressed as Muslim individuals and tried to vouch for others, falsely claiming they were registered voters, in a stunt aimed at highlighting Minnesota’s voter vouching laws. However, poll workers properly verified identities and refused to allow them to vote, demonstrating the effectiveness of existing election safeguards.
The incident, which was shared online, showed that the system successfully prevented fraud by requiring sworn oaths and identity verification. Minnesota officials, including the Secretary of State, condemned the actions as illegal and ignorant of election laws. The duo has a history of similar activities, including past controversies in New Hampshire and federal property violations.
Despite their claims that they were exposing election vulnerabilities, the attempt failed, with no ballots issued and no fraud proven. Critics view their actions as driven by viral content and attention-seeking, not legitimate concerns. The case serves as a clear example of how deceptive tactics backfire, reinforcing public trust in democratic processes and highlighting the consequences of election-related provocation.
FAQs
They were charged with felony counts of unlawful voting and identity theft for dressing up and attempting to vote at a polling place while falsely claiming to be registered voters.
Poll workers verified voter identities and required them to sign an oath under penalty of perjury, which they failed to do, thus preventing them from voting.
Yes, the system worked as intended by rejecting attempts to vote under false identities and enforcing identity verification rules.
It allows a registered voter to vouch for up to eight people living with them to vote, but requires them to sign an oath under penalty of perjury confirming the identity of those vouching.
They claimed to be highlighting potential weaknesses in election laws, but the videos showed they were attempting to deceive poll workers and test the system's limits.
Yes, in 2012, he was involved in a sting operation in New Hampshire using fake names on ballots, and in other cases, he faced charges for entering federal property under false pretenses.
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