Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin (Republican) has issued an executive order requiring all voting in the November election to be done by paper ballot.
Executive Order 35The bill, signed into law Wednesday, codifies election security procedures put in place under Youngkin’s administration.
The order outlines several requirements for election integrity, including a “documented chain of custody” where ballots are tracked through “every step of the process” and no voting machines are used, only paper ballot tabulating machines that are not connected to the internet.
Executive Order 35 also directs state election officials to remove “non-citizens who may have knowingly or accidentally registered to vote.”
Records from the Youngkin administration revealed that between January 2022 and July 2024, more than 6,300 foreign nationals were removed from the voter rolls.
Election officials also found and removed 79,867 voter rolls containing the names of people who had died or moved out of state.
“Virginia’s election security model works. This isn’t about Democrats or Republicans, this is about America and Virginia,” the governor said. statement.
“Every legal vote should be counted, not tainted by illegal votes or inaccurate machines. In Virginia, we don’t play games and our election security model works,” Youngkin continued.
He went on to explain the process of counting and verifying the paper ballots.
We use 100% paper ballots with strict storage controls; We use tabulating machines, not voting machines, that are tested every election and are never connected to the internet; We don’t send out mass mailings of ballots; We monitor ballot drop boxes 24/7; We update our voter rolls daily, using DMV data and other reliable data sources to verify voters’ legal residency and identity; In addition to adding new voters, we remove those who should not be on the list, including deceased individuals, individuals who have moved, and foreign nationals who have mistakenly or maliciously attempted to register.
Later, during an appearance on Fox News, the governor said, “Call me crazy, but I believe American elections should be decided by the American people and Virginia elections should be decided by the people of Virginia.”
Call me crazy, but I believe American elections should be decided by the American people, and Virginia elections should be decided by the people of Virginia. pic.twitter.com/JMVhqmqB1D
— Glenn Youngkin (@GlennYoungkin) August 8, 2024
Former President Donald Trump praised Youngkin’s executive order in the Society of Truth. post on wednesday,writing:
Under the incredible leadership of Governor Glenn Youngkin, our beautiful Commonwealth of Virginia is taking a strong lead in securing our November elections by protecting every legal vote and preventing illegal immigrants who have entered our country from voting.
All votes will be on paper ballots and will be counted securely and fairly. They will not be counted on machines connected to the internet, which is a huge security risk. We must work to ensure our elections are fair and secure. All states should follow Virginia’s example. We need volunteers to monitor polling places. It’s very important.
Trump concluded by saying, “The election on November 5th will be the most important election in the history of our country. Thank you, Glenn. You’ve done a great job!”
