O'Keefe and Higby Face Felony Charges Over Minnesota Vouching Incident

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty announced felony charges of unlawful voting and identity theft against James O'Keefe and Cam Higby on Wednesday. The prosecution argues the two men committed these offenses by providing false names to poll workers while initiating the state's voter vouching process during the August 11 primary. O'Keefe, 42, resides in West Palm Beach, Florida, while Higby, 26, lives in Covington, Washington.

According to the county attorney, the pair wore costumes and utilized the names of registered voters in the precinct without the knowledge or permission of those individuals. They began the vouching procedure, a mechanism that allows a registered voter to attest to the identity of a new resident who lacks proof of current address. Moriarty stated that poll workers noticed unusual behavior and flagged the incident to election officials. Those officials subsequently requested a police investigation. Although the two men did not sign the required oath, the prosecutor determined that starting the process with false identities was sufficient to justify the felony charges.

In a written statement and video released on Wednesday evening, O'Keefe described the actions as investigative journalism. He asserted that the team intended to pose hypotheticals to election clerks rather than complete the voting process. O'Keefe noted that they carefully phrased their interactions by saying "the name is" instead of "my name is" when presenting the identities. He wrote, "In our report, we clearly stopped and walked out of the polling places to avoid even touching a voting ballot." Higby did not immediately respond to requests for comment and had not retained an attorney in court records. Neither man has entered a plea.

The vouching process is rarely utilized in Minnesota. Data from the state's Secretary of State office indicates that fewer than 0.6% of votes cast in the November 2024 election relied on this method. The system is most commonly used by older adults who have not updated their addresses on driver's licenses. The activists posted their video to YouTube on August 13, showing the pair in attire resembling that of some Muslims while using fake accents at multiple Minneapolis voting sites. O'Keefe referred to Higby as his wife during these interactions.

Moriarty emphasized that the response from poll workers demonstrated the effectiveness of the state's checks and balances. She stated, "Free and fair elections are the bedrock of democracy, and their protection is one of our highest priorities." David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election Innovation and Research, noted that he was unaware of organized fraud stemming from the vouching system but acknowledged that impersonating another voter is a serious crime.

Voter identification laws differ across the United States. Thirty-six states require or request some form of identification at the polls, ranging from photo IDs to utility bills. In the remaining 14 states and Washington, D.C., voters verify their identity through methods such as signing affidavits or providing personal data. Some states allow specific individuals to vouch for voters who lack identification, including Alaska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, and West Virginia.

The next steps in the legal process remain pending as the defendants have not yet appeared to enter pleas. The case will proceed under the jurisdiction of Hennepin County, where the primary elections were held.