Arizona Secretary of State accuses nine people of double voting in 2008

Arizona ’s Secretary of State marked National Voter Registration Day on Tuesday by announcing outreach efforts and alleged voter fraud. 

Standing outside a Catholic Charities office in Phoenix , Secretary of State Ken Bennett encouraged Arizonans to get registered to vote before the Oct. 9 deadline -- and he announced nine alleged cases of double voting.

Bennett says Arizona is one of 16 states that participates in a program to cross-reference their ballots. The nine people caught are accused of voting in Arizona and  other states in the 2008 election.

Bennett acknowledges cross-checking all those voters is a slow process, and that there’s no way to undo those votes.

“If an election ever came down to someone [winning] by one or two votes, and we could find that someone had voted multiple times – it would be hard to imagine that we could find those things fast enough to make a difference in that election," Bennett said, "which is why we want to make sure that people know that we’re checking for this, and that we don’t want them voting twice in this upcoming election.”

Double voting is a felony, with a maximum sentence of two years behind bars and a $150,000 fine.

“Vote once – but not twice or three times,” Bennett said.