A conservative group in Wisconsin has found no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the state during the 2020 presidential election.
In the months following the election, former President Donald Trump and his allies alleged that he only lost to Joe Biden due to widespread voter fraud, though no evidence has been presented to back up the claims.
They specifically claimed fraud occurred in key swing states including Wisconsin. Trump ultimately narrowly lost the battleground state by less than one point in 2020, even after winning the state in 2016. Joe Biden won 20,682 more votes than Trump.
The former president in June pushed for an audit of the state, accusing GOP leaders who refused to back one of "working hard to cover up election corruption, in Wisconsin."
"They are actively trying to prevent a Forensic Audit of the election results, especially those which took place in Milwaukee, one of the most corrupt election locales in the country," Trump said in a statement. "Don't fall for their lies!"
On Tuesday, the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty released a report stating that they had found "no evidence of fraudulent ballots or widespread voter fraud."
"A close review, including a hand count of roughly 20,000 ballots from 20 wards, uncovered no evidence of fraudulent ballots or widespread voter fraud," the report reads. "Our hand review found that the counts closely matched those reported by the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC). The review found no evidence of fraudulent ballots."
The 10-month review found only limited instances in which ineligible people tried to cast ballots, with many ballots being rejected. It also found no evidence of significant issues with voting machines.
Still, the report offered criticisms of the way the election was run, alleging that the widespread use of absentee ballots violated state law and that voter rolls were not properly maintained.
In a statement to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, a spokesperson for the Wisconsin Elections Commission wrote: "Certification of the November 2020 presidential election was based upon lawfully cast votes that were affirmed by municipal, county and state canvass certifications and multiple court decisions after reviewing these matters."
Audits and recounts in other states also similarly upheld Biden's electoral victory.
An audit of the election results of Maricopa County, Arizona—a formerly conservative county containing Phoenix and its suburbs that has sped to the left in recent years—found that Biden won by an even larger margin than the initial tally found. The audit, like the Wisconsin review, was pushed and backed by Republicans.
In Michigan, another swing state Biden won, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said a series of 250 random audits across the state upheld the integrity and accuracy of the 2020 election.
Even as the claims of fraud have been disproven and dismissed, some Republicans continue claiming the election was stolen. Trump, in a statement released in late November, claimed that "the fake news media" demeaned what he called "the real results" of the election.
Newsweek reached out to the Wisconsin Elections Commission for comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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Andrew Stanton is a Newsweek weekend reporter based in Maine. His role is reporting on U.S. politics and social issues. ... Read more
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