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James O'Keefe charged over Minnesota voting video
Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty has filed felony charges of identity theft and unlawful voting against conservative influencers James O'Keefe and Cam Higby. The charges stem from a primary election video where the pair visited Hennepin County precincts to investigate Minnesota's vote-vouching provision, with prosecutors alleging they impersonated registered voters to begin the ballot application process.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Conservative media figure James O'Keefe is vigorously defending his actions following the announcement of felony charges against him and his colleague, Cam Higby, framing the prosecution as a direct attack on press freedom.
The charges, filed by the Hennepin County Attorney's Office, stem from an undercover operation conducted by the pair at multiple Minneapolis polling places during the August 11 primary election.
First Amendment Defense
What we know:
In a video posted to his social media channels, O'Keefe pushed back against the allegations of unlawful voting and identity theft.
"Minnesota has just charged both myself and fellow journalist Cam Higby with two felony counts in retaliation for our bombshell investigative report on voter vouching laws that we did," O'Keefe stated in the video. "We stand by our reporting. This is an attempt to criminalize investigative journalism."
O'Keefe argues that because he and Higby never completed the voting process, their actions were not illegal. He claimed that his team underwent specific training to ensure they did not cross legal lines while testing the system.
"We conducted training and specifically told each journalist never to sign an affidavit, never to procure a ballot, never to apply for a ballot, or even touch a ballot," O'Keefe stated. "We even did exercises, training our reporters to say 'the name is' rather than 'my name is.'"
O'Keefe characterized the prosecution as an attempt to distract from vulnerabilities in the election system, calling the situation a "landmark First Amendment case where everyone's right to speak truth to power has just been put on the line."
ames O'Keefe, an American conservative political activist and founder of Project Veritas, meets with supporters during the Conservative Political Action Conference 2020 (Getty Images)
Undercover Operation
Dig deeper:
The charges follow FOX 9's previous reporting on the incident, in which the men posted edited videos of themselves wearing disguises—including an Islamic niqab—while attempting to test Minnesota's election vouching system. The state's vouching law allows a registered voter to confirm the residency of another eligible voter on Election Day.
According to the criminal complaints, the men intentionally misrepresented their identities by giving election judges the names of actual registered voters in the precinct without those voters’ knowledge or permission.
"We didn't apply for a ballot," O'Keefe countered in his response video. "We were there talking to election clerks, posing hypotheticals and getting answers so that Americans could know what was happening in the elections."
No undercover journalism allowed at polling sites
What they're saying:
During a news conference Wednesday, Hennepin Co. Attorney Mary Moriarty emphasized that under Minnesota law, the crime of unlawful voting occurs when an individual intentionally misrepresents their identity when applying for a ballot. She stated that "applying" for a ballot begins the moment a person approaches a roster judge and misrepresents their identity, regardless of whether they ultimately sign an oath or cast a vote.
Furthermore, Moriarty explicitly rejected the "journalism" defense during her remarks.
"If you identify as a journalist, there is no such thing as undercover investigation in the polling place," Moriarty said. "You have to identify yourself as a journalist in the polling place, which they did not do."
O'Keefe characterized Moriarty's stance as "wrong as a matter of constitutional law." He and Higby are scheduled to make their first appearance in Hennepin County District Court on November 16.