Conspiracy Theorists Discover Math Isn’t Their Strong Suit
In the latest installment of “made-up statistics that sound scary but make zero sense,” viral claims suggest 11 million illegal aliens voted in the last election. This theory requires believing that millions of undocumented immigrantspeople who actively avoid government attentionsomehow registered to vote, obtained proper identification, showed up to polling places, and cast ballots without anyone noticing. It’s the electoral equivalent of believing Bigfoot runs a successful Etsy shop.
The claim originated from the same corner of the internet that brings you “birds aren’t real” and “the Earth is flat,” but with less self-awareness about being satirical. Proponents point to “irregularities” in voter rolls, which is conspiracy-speak for “I don’t understand how election administration works but I’m angry about it.” The math behind the 11 million illegal voters claim requires ignoring literally every safeguard in the electoral process.
What makes this particularly hilarious is the logistics. Coordinating 11 million people to commit federal crimes in unison would be the greatest organizational achievement in human history. We can’t get Americans to show up for jury duty, but apparently undocumented immigrants are running Navy SEAL-level operations to vote in elections where half the country doesn’t even bother participating legally.
Election officials, who actually understand how voting works because it’s literally their job, have repeatedly explained that voter registration databases are cross-referenced with multiple government databases to verify citizenship. But facts are boring when you can instead believe a shadowy cabal is orchestrating massive fraud while somehow leaving zero evidence.
Studies have repeatedly shown noncitizen voting is virtually nonexistent, with documented cases numbering in the dozens nationallynot millions. But why let reality interfere with a good scare story? The people sharing these claims on Facebook aren’t interested in accuracy; they’re interested in confirmation bias wrapped in official-looking graphics.
The really entertaining part is watching the same people who claim 11 million illegal votes happened also insist the election system is secure when their candidate wins. Schrodinger’s voter fraud: simultaneously rampant and nonexistent depending on electoral outcomes. It’s intellectual gymnastics that would win Olympic gold if consistency wasn’t required.
Belief in widespread voter fraud follows partisan lines, shocking no one who has paid attention to American politics for more than thirty seconds. If your side loses, it’s fraud. If your side wins, it’s democracy. This bipartisan tradition of selective outrage is the only thing both parties can agree on.
The 11 million figure is particularly lazy because it’s just the estimated undocumented population in America. The theory literally assumes 100% participation in voter fraud, which would be impressive if it wasn’t completely insane.
SOURCE: https://bohiney.com/11-million-illegal-aliens-vote/5
SOURCE: Sarah Pappalardo (https://bohiney.com/11-million-illegal-aliens-vote/5)
