Youngkin following Prince William election official indictment: ‘Every legal vote will be counted’

The indictment of a former Prince William County top election official is just the beginning.

Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) told Potomac Local News his administration is working to ensure every legal vote is counted in the November 8 General Election.

“What we saw last year in our campaign was that when we brought 5,000 volunteers who were poll watchers and actually registered as election officials and trained people, we were able to establish a real sense of confidence in the election process. And we had a record turnout for a governor’s race. We’re doing the same thing in my job as governor,” said Youngkin at a ceremonial bill signing at Quantico Corporate Center in Stafford County on Friday, September 9, 2022.

Youngkin signed legislation banning outside money from individuals or non-governmental organizations that wish to fund voter education programs at the state and local levels. He also signed a requirement to update voter rolls every week to purge the names of those who have died.

Republicans failed to repeal laws passed in 2020 under Gov. Ralph Northam (D) — a provision allowing anyone to register to vote and cast a ballot on Election Day and to allow voters to cast a ballot without showing an ID.

A grand jury indicted Michele White, the former Prince William County Voter Registrar who resigned her position in April 2021, on corruption charges tied to the 2020 General Election. Youngkin declined to comment on the case due to the ongoing nature of the investigation. Attorney General Jason Miyares (R) has provided few details on the case for the same reasons.

However, moments after we asked Youngkin about the White case, Miyares announced a new 20-person election integrity team that will give legal advice to the Virginia Department of Elections, investigate and prosecute violations of Virginia election law, ensure uniformity and legality in the application of election laws, and work with law enforcement to ensure legality and purity in elections.

“I pledged during the 2021 campaign to work to increase transparency and strengthen confidence in our state elections. It should be easy to vote and hard to cheat. The Election Integrity Unit will work to help to restore confidence in our democratic process in the Commonwealth,” said Miyares.

The Republican Party of Virginia praised the Attorney General’s announcement. “Just this week, we saw the need for stronger protections for our elections system when a former top Prince William County election official was indicted on fraud charges related to the 2020 election. By prosecuting this individual, Attorney General Miyares is sending a strong message to election officials throughout the state to follow the law, because our election process must be held to a high standard,” it penned in a statement.

Virginia has a system of elections that divides authority among 133 local electoral boards and general registrars and the bi-partisan State Board of Elections.