James O’Keefe Faces Felony Charges Over Undercover Report at Polling Locations

The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office charged conservative journalist James O’Keefe and influencer Cam Higby on Wednesday over an undercover report on Minnesota’s polling places.

The individuals are facing felony charges for unlawful voting and identity theft after they allegedly misrepresented themselves while conducting their report on the state’s polling locations, according to NBC News:

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty, who announced the charges at a news conference, accused the pair of entering polling places during state primary election voting on Aug. 11 and identifying themselves using names of registered voters in those precincts without those voters’ knowledge or permission.

“Both men stopped short of signing the oath we all sign before receiving our ballot,” she said. “But Minnesota law states clearly that no individual shall intentionally misrepresent their identity in applying for a ballot.”

O’Keefe and Higby were using a process under Minnesota law known as vouching. It allows people can vouch for other voters on Election Day. A registered voter who lives in the same precinct can vouch for up to eight voters, while staff members of residential facilities can vouch for their residents.

The pair of influencers disguised themselves and recorded themselves going undercover using hidden cameras at the polling places. They posted videos capturing their interactions on social media in August. O’Keefe said in a post on X that they dressed in “Muslim garb” — including, for one of them, a full-face veil known as a niqab — and their goal was to “expose the sheer lunacy of Minnesota’s ‘vouching’ system.”

I went undercover in Minneapolis, Michigan on Primary Election Day with @anthonyjrubin, founder of @realmuckraker and @camhigby, members of the Justice League and OMG undercover journalists to put Minnesota’s voter “vouching” system to the test. Under Minnesota’s Statutes § 201.061, a registered voter can sign an affidavit affirming that they know another individual resides in the same precinct, allowing that person to register at the polls without presenting standard proof of residence. One registered voter can vouch for up to eight people. We wanted to find out what this actually looks like inside a polling place and how far election workers would let us take it. Disguised in traditional Muslim attire, we entered polling locations across Minneapolis and presented an intentionally extreme scenario to expose the sheer lunacy of Minnesota’s ‘vouching’ system. I told workers that the people accompanying me were unregistered and repeatedly pressed them about identification, how many people I could bring in, and what would be required for them to register. Again and again, workers explained the vouching process to us. At one location, after I made clear that the people with me were not registered, a worker told me I could vouch for as many as eight people. I told them I would leave, get additional people and return. The worker explained that because I was already registered, I could serve as the voucher. At another location, a poll worker explained that if everyone was in the same precinct and I was already registered there, I could vouch for their residency. When I pressed her about identification, she put it plainly: “You’re the ID.” At White Park Recreation Center, a worker explained that a voucher must personally know the individuals and know that they live within the precinct. The worker also explained that the voucher signs a legal oath affirming their residency, while the individuals being vouched for sign an oath affirming their own identity and eligibility to vote. I asked whether their eligibility was actually verified. “After the fact, yeah,” the worker responded. We wanted to put the process to an extreme real-world test and document what election workers would tell us when confronted with the scenario firsthand. The purpose wasn’t simply to ask what Minnesota law says on paper. Not every worker reacted the same way. Some became suspicious of our team and challenged what we were doing. But across the locations captured in our investigation, we documented workers explaining how Minnesota’s vouching process could be used to establish residency for people registering at the polls without standard identification. The investigation is part of an ongoing @ctznjusticelg series, with additional follow-up reporting from @anthonyjrubin, founder of @realmuckraker & @camhigby coming soon. If you’ve witnessed fraud in your community or have information, email tips@okeefemediagroup.com or message us securely on Signal: 914-491-9395.

— James O’Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) August 13, 2026

O’Keefe and Higby visited multiple Minneapolis polling locations during the state’s August primary races. They filmed themselves posing as voters to ask about the state’s vote vouching provision.

They later posted the videos on social media. The objective was to find out whether they could use the vouching system to vote without providing identification.

Secretary of State Steve Simon said, “As I read the law, you can’t impersonate another registered voter, and that’s exactly what they appear to have filmed themselves doing.”

Neither O’Keefe nor Higby went through with the illegal voting, and one of the people they impersonated was able to vote later that same evening.

Minnesota’s vouching law allows someone who registers to vote on Election Day without the required documents proving their current residence to have another registered voter in the same precinct vouch for them.

The registered voter must accompany the applicant to the polling place and sign an oath confirming they actually reside at their stated address. A single registered voter can vouch for up to eight people, but those who have been vouched for cannot vouch for someone else.

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