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County GOP leader calls for more election integrity measures
The location where a student illegally voted at the University of Michigan in the last election remains active heading into this month’s midterm voting, prompting some election integrity concerns.
In 2024, 19-year-old Chinese national Haoxiang Gao was charged with voting illegally in the 2024 presidential election at a voting site set up in the university’s Museum of Art. He has since fled the country.
Currently the museum is listed as one of two “Campus Voting Hubs,” where early voting will start Oct. 21 and run through Nov. 1 and will be open 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.
The University of Michigan’s media relations division did not respond to requests from The College Fix asking what measures have been taken to ensure that no illegal voting occurs at the museum site again.
As The College Fix previously reported, Gao had allegedly registered and voted at the University of Michigan under lax procedures around same-day and early voting opportunities. He signed the voter registration application stating he was a U.S. citizen, according to the feds.
Jason Rogers, chairman of the Washtenaw County GOP, told The College Fix that “Michigan’s rules make incidents like the Gao case (and similar problems) too easy.”
“Same-day registration relies mostly on someone simply checking a box saying they’re a citizen, with no documentary proof of citizenship required,” he said via email.
“On top of that, a student only needs 30 days of residency to register at a campus address. They can vote absentee or early in their home state and then register and vote here with almost no real-time check that they haven’t already voted elsewhere.”
Rena Basch, director of elections for Washtenaw County, did not respond to a request from The College Fix asking what measures they are taking to ensure illegal voting does not occur at the University of Michigan’s polling sites during the current election cycle.
Michigan has one of the most high-profile and hotly contested U.S. Senate races in the nation, with Democrat Abdul El-Sayed running against Republican Mike Rogers. The polls show El-Sayed with a slight lead among likely voters in what is perhaps the most-watched race in the country, with implications for control of the Senate and the future of the Democratic Party.
During the August primaries, El-Sayed received something of a blowout victory in Ann Arbor, where the university is located.
Currently the University of Michigan offers two “Campus Voting Hubs,” one at the Museum at Art and the other at the North Campus Duderstadt Center Gallery.
The Campus Voting Hubs are designed by the Creative Campus Voting Project, in partnership with the city of Ann Arbor Clerk’s Office, the Museum of Art, the Duderstadt Center Gallery, and the UMICH Votes Coalition.
The nonpartisan Creative Campus Voting Project is headed by two professors who have donated to Democratic candidates, as The College Fix previously reported. They say
Rogers, chairman of the Washtenaw County GOP, told The Fix his group has been “recruiting election inspectors and challengers across the county so we can observe the process and flag issues where we can.”
Ultimately, he added, the state needs “better rules and laws” to ensure election integrity.
“We also support tighter rules — proof of citizenship, stronger verification, and better safeguards against dual voting — because the current setup leaves too many gaps,” he said.
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