Minnesota Charges O'Keefe and Higby With Felonies Over Voting Stunt

A Minnesota prosecutor has charged conservative activist James O'Keefe and influencer Cam Higby with felony unlawful voting and identity theft, saying the pair posed as registered voters at Minneapolis polling places during the August primary and filmed the encounters for a hidden camera video.

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty announced the charges on Wednesday, October 28. O'Keefe is 42 and Higby is 26. Each charge carries a penalty of up to five years in prison, according to the county attorney's office. The charges are allegations, and both men are presumed innocent unless a court finds otherwise.

What prosecutors say happened

Prosecutors say the pair visited several precincts in Minneapolis during the August 11 primary and gave election judges the names of registered voters without those voters' knowledge or permission. Some of the names belonged to people who had died, and at least one belonged to a person who had already voted, according to reporting on the complaint. Neither man voted, Moriarty said, and neither signed the oath the vouching process requires. Her argument is that the law covers the attempt itself. Minnesota law bars a person from intentionally misrepresenting their identity while applying for a ballot, and she said giving a judge another voter's name is part of that application.

"You cannot begin to apply for a ballot and misrepresent yourself," Moriarty told reporters. She said the pair posted the videos to social media in an attempt to cast doubt on the state's voting system, and she said the charges were not based on the men's political views or on how offensive the stunt may have looked.

The vouching system at the center of the case

The stunt targeted Minnesota's vouching system. Under that system, a registered voter can confirm the residency of up to eight other people in the same precinct so they can register and vote on the same day. Moriarty said use of vouching is rare, about 0.6 percent of votes in the 2024 general election, and that it is most often used by older voters who have recently moved into assisted living. O'Keefe and Higby have presented their work in the past as an attempt to expose weak points in election rules. Higby has said the video tested the system and that he neither voted nor signed an affidavit. The O'Keefe Media Group did not respond to a request for comment in the Reuters report.

In the videos, which drew more than 10 million views on X according to USA Today, the men wore clothing resembling attire worn by some Muslims and used fake accents while asking election workers about vouching. Poll workers grew suspicious and reported the encounters to election officials, who asked police to investigate, according to the complaint reporting.

Why it matters

The case lands five days before the November 3 midterm elections, in a fight over who controls state election rules and how far undercover recording can go at a polling place. It also sets up a direct legal test. The defense position, as Higby has stated it, is that no ballot was sought in good faith and no vote was cast. The prosecution position is that the misrepresentation itself broke the law. A court will have to decide where Minnesota's statute draws that line.

What happens next

The men face court proceedings in Hennepin County on one count each of unlawful voting and identity theft, based on the charging reports. No trial date was reported on Wednesday. Election officials in Minnesota are running the final days of early voting for the midterms while the case moves forward.