{"id":2671720,"date":"2026-09-28T08:03:01","date_gmt":"2026-09-28T12:03:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaignkansas-league-of-women-voters-accused-of-buying-high-school-voter-registrations\/"},"modified":"2026-09-28T08:08:21","modified_gmt":"2026-09-28T12:08:21","slug":"utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaignkansas-league-of-women-voters-accused-of-buying-high-school-voter-registrations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaignkansas-league-of-women-voters-accused-of-buying-high-school-voter-registrations\/","title":{"rendered":"League of Women Voters Accused Of Buying Voter Registrations"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Futm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaignkansas-league-of-women-voters-accused-of-buying-high-school-voter-registrations%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2671720&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article reports on an alleged scandal involving the League of Women Voters (LWV) in Kansas, which is accused of trying to pay high school students to register to vote using gift cards, specifically Starbucks, a violation of federal and state laws. Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach issued a cease-and-desist letter demanding the group stop offering monetary incentives for voter registration and requested records related to the activity. the promotion, promoted via social media, prompted concern from election officials and law enforcement. Critics, including Kansas House Elections Committee Chairman Pat Proctor, emphasized the brazen violation and questioned the group\u2019s compliance wiht election laws, noting LWV&#8217;s long-standing partisan ties and legal opposition to election integrity measures. The article situates this incident within broader concerns about left-leaning organizations and so-called \u201cballot harvesting,\u201d funding, and efforts to influence youth voter registration through sponsored programs and incentives. It also highlights recent federal and state enforcement actions against election-related fraud,emphasizing the importance of lawful practices and the potential consequences for illegal voting activities.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>The left-wing League of Women Voters is on notice after allegedly trying to pay high school students to register to vote earlier this year in Kansas. <\/p>\n<p>The state lawmaker who first raised concerns about the registration incentives tells The Federalist a local chapter of the LWV couldn\u2019t have been more brazen about the promotion. <\/p>\n<h2>\u2018They May Not Buy Registrations\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>On Friday, Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach sent a cease-and-desist <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ag.ks.gov\/home\/showpublisheddocument\/26305\/639259427172905494\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">letter<\/a> to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lwvk.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">League of Women Voters of Kansas<\/a> and the LVW chapter in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lwv.org\/local-leagues\/lwv-leavenworth-county\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Leavenworth County<\/a>, demanding the groups \u201cimmediately stop offering cash, gift cards, or any other item of value in connection with voter registration or voting\u2026\u201d <\/p>\n<p>The Republican AG also referred the matter to Ryan Kriegshauser, U.S. Attorney for the Kansas District who in his short time in the position has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/opa\/pr\/six-charged-california-kansas-and-louisiana-illegally-voting-fraudulent-voter-registration\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">earned a reputation<\/a> as an aggressive <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/opa\/pr\/six-charged-california-kansas-and-louisiana-illegally-voting-fraudulent-voter-registration\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">prosecutor of election fraud<\/a>. Kobach advised the LWV that the state also reserves the right \u201cto bring any appropriate enforcement action following further investigation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ag.ks.gov\/Home\/Components\/News\/News\/360\/1292\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">press release,<\/a> Kobach explained that social media posts from the Leavenworth chapter of the League advertised gift card giveaways to students in exchange for their voter registrations, including a photo of a table sign that read, \u201cRegister to vote get a Starbucks gift card.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Doing so is a federal crime, the attorney general warned in the letter to\u00a0 Marlene Merrill, president of the League of Women Voters of Kansas, based in Topeka. Individuals convicted of knowingly paying a person \u201ceither for registration to vote or for voting\u201d face up to $10,000 in fines and up to five years in prison. <\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s illegal in Kansas, too. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe conduct which the League of Women Voters is alleged to have engaged in appears to violate both federal and state law,\u201d the attorney general wrote. <\/p>\n<figure><\/figure>\n<p><em>Source: League of Women Voters Leavenworth County Facebook<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Individuals who accept such election bribes can be charged, too, but sources say it\u2019s unlikely the unwitting high school students will face any consequences. <\/p>\n<p>Lest \u201cvoter rights\u201d groups believe nominal gift cards a trifling matter in the pursuit of voter registration, Kobach informed Merrill that there is no \u201cde minimus\u201d exception. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cPaying people to register or to vote is illegal, period,\u201d the Republican AG said. \u201cThe size of the gift card does not matter. These prohibitions exist to protect the integrity of our elections and public confidence in the results. Groups may encourage registration and help eligible Kansans complete the process. They may not buy registrations.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The AG also told the League to \u201creserve all records relating to the activity, including financial records and registration forms collected\u201d and to identify \u201cevery instance in Kansas in which the organization distributed cash, gift cards, or other items of value in exchange for voter registration or voting\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>LWV officials did not return The Federalist\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/exclusive-google-faces-pressure-in-india-to-help-curb-illegal-lending-apps-sources\/\" title=\"Exclusive-Google faces pressure in India to help curb illegal lending apps -sources\">email request seeking comment<\/a>. <\/p>\n<h2>\u2018What Really Shocked Me\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>Kansas House Elections Committee Chairman Pat Proctor first raised red flags about the voter-registration drives held in May 2026 at Lansing High School and Leavenworth High School in the Republican\u2019s district.<\/p>\n<p>As of Sunday, the League\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LeagueofWomenVotersLeavenworthCounty\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Facebook page<\/a> boasted photos from the May events. In one picture, a volunteer smiles behind a registration table. The Starbucks sign, complete with the coffee giant\u2019s logo, is visible on the table in front of her. In separate photos, young people hold what appear to be Starbucks gift cards, apparently post-registration.   <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.influencewatch.org\/political-party\/correct-the-record\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Brendan Fischer,<\/a> a longtime far-left activist who serves as director of strategic investigations at the Campaign Legal Center, agreed that federal law bars payments to individuals in exchange for their registrations or votes, <a href=\"https:\/\/kansasreflector.com\/2026\/09\/23\/kansas-lawmaker-cries-foul-over-voter-registration-gift-cards-asks-kobach-to-investigate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">according to<\/a> the Kansas Reflector. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cGiven the breadth of the law, well-intentioned groups seeking to encourage civic participation can accidentally cross a legal line,\u201d Fischer told the publication, which laughingly described the Campaign Legal Center (read more about the left-leaning group at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.influencewatch.org\/non-profit\/campaign-legal-center-clc\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">InfluenceWatch<\/a>) as a \u201cnonpartisan legal organization focused on democracy.\u201d That\u2019s not surprising. The Reflector is owned by the left-wing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.influencewatch.org\/non-profit\/the-newsroom\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">States Newsroom,<\/a> a nonprofit network \u201claunched with the backing of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.influencewatch.org\/non-profit\/hopewell-fund\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Hopewell Fund<\/a>, another liberal dark-money group,\u201d according to The Washington Post. <\/p>\n<p>Proctor, who is running for Kansas <a href=\"https:\/\/ballotpedia.org\/Kansas_Secretary_of_State_election,_2026_(August_4_Republican_primary)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">secretary of state<\/a>, said the League of Women Voters\u2019 local chapter didn\u2019t just cross the line, \u201cthey sprinted across it full speed.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe brazenness of it is what really shocked me,\u201d the Republican election integrity warrior said. When Proctor posted his concerns about the event on his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/PatProctorKS\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Facebook page,<\/a> League members actually liked and loved the post. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf they can fragrantly violate the law, then our laws don\u2019t mean anything,\u201d the state representative said. <\/p>\n<h2>\u2018A Partisan Ecosystem\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>As the group\u2019s Facebook page reaffirms, the League of Women Voters has long been the pet of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.influencewatch.org\/non-profit\/league-of-women-voters\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">well-heeled leftist interests<\/a>, a front group for all manner of left-wing causes. And it has been a vehemently litigious opponent of election integrity laws. <\/p>\n<p>The League has routinely joined forces with the Marxist ACLU in <a href=\"https:\/\/abcnews.com\/US\/civil-rights-groups-sue-trump-executive-order-requiring\/story?id=120377609\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">suing to block states<\/a> from implementing election integrity laws, including voter ID measures that would block noncitizens from voting in U.S. elections. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe League of Women Voters of Kansas has long existed in a partisan ecosystem,\u201d Proctor said. \u201cI like to call them the axis of ballot harvesting.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>He added that the conduct of the LWV has called its tax-exempt status into question. Perhaps that question is answered with the Leavenworth County LVW\u2019s promotion.<\/p>\n<figure><\/figure>\n<p><em>Source: League of Women Voters Leavenworth County Facebook page<\/em><\/p>\n<p>In 2020, an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.influencewatch.org\/non-profit\/voter-registration-project\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">avalanche of private cash<\/a> paid for \u201cnonpartisan\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.influencewatch.org\/non-profit\/league-of-women-voters-education-fund-lwvef\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">leftist groups<\/a> to register left-leaning voters. Under the cover of Covid, election laws \u2014 including some instances of <a href=\"https:\/\/gophouse.org\/posts\/rep-deboyer-president-referencing-muskegon-voter-registration-case-shows-need-for-reforms-election-security\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">incentives registration<\/a> \u2014 dirtied the <a href=\"https:\/\/search.library.ohio.gov\/discovery\/fulldisplay\/alma991015415513208520\/01OHIOLINK_SLO:SLO\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">rigged<\/a> election year. That private funding barrage was followed by the public sector blitz known as <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/02\/26\/trump-killed-bidenbucks-congress-needs-to-bury-it\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Bidenbucks,<\/a> with the Biden administration spending untold amounts of taxpayer money on big government voter registration campaigns. <\/p>\n<p>This year, left-wing groups like <a href=\"https:\/\/new-voters.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">New Voters<\/a> are promoting \u201cswag\u201d offerings to those who sign up and run voter registration drives. <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/forms\/d\/e\/1FAIpQLSc9PBbIVEc_VxpLi_pgpdUbdQeErLsMsb4QoG5EsrSADT9nuQ\/viewform\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">New Voters<\/a> promises those who compete their voter registration drives on high school campuses \u201cwill be able to choose a prize including but not limited to\u201d Amazon gift cards, name brand water bottles and <a href=\"https:\/\/shop.lululemon.com\/c\/belt-bags\/n18mu7zrdci?cid=Google_PPC_US_NAT_EN_X_BrandIncr_All-Brand_ONLINE_GEN_Y23_DM_ag-PPC_G_US_EN_DM_X_GEN_ALL_Accessories-Bags-BeltBags&#038;gclsrc=aw.ds&#038;gad_source=1&#038;gad_campaignid=19787783898&#038;gbraid=0AAAAADL8Avm04Wq-prfoilU3w7FJx98F3&#038;gclid=CjwKCAjw_eLVBhBEEiwAeaYZfJ7DstYAG6xb5S5U1s7E_5oFI9rniMwfTGyfrxY-737IiLmd12pJNhoCwVAQAvD_BwE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Lululemon belt bags<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The group bills itself as a \u201cstudent-led 501(c)3 nonprofit that empowers high school student leaders across the country to run effective voter registration and civic engagement programs in their school.\u201d To what ultimate end? The answer would appear to be in the company it keeps. <\/p>\n<p>New Voters founder is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/jahnavirao\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Jahnavi Rao<\/a>, former head of Youth Engagement and Millennial Voter Participation for the Democratic National Committee, where she \u201c[w]orked with College Democrats of America Chapters to implement voter registration events at college graduations,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Smithsonian-Report-Saving-Americas-Story.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">according to<\/a> a White House Domestic Policy Council report on the left-wing ideological takeover of the Smithsonian\u2019s Institution\u2019s National Museum of American History. Her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/jahnavirao\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">LinkedIn page<\/a> notes the same. Rao then served as Deputy Campaign Manager for a Democratic candidate in Pennsylvania, then as an intern in the Biden White House where she \u201cdiscuss[ed] youth priorities and collaboration opportunities with the Second Gentleman and various cabinet officials.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rao has been at it for the past decade, boasting that New Voters has engaged tens of thousands of high school students through over 1,000 drives in high schools in 42 states\u201d \u2014 Including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kmbc.com\/article\/kansas-election-boards-see-increase-in-new-voter-registrations\/40593923\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Kansas<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>New Voters\u2019 comrades include groups like Generation Citizen and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DccFNaLKdRU\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Civics Center,<\/a> all engaged in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.generationcitizen.org\/rise-vote-2026\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">RISE Vote 2026<\/a> campaign and salivating over the tens of millions of Gen Zers eligible to vote in the midterms. <\/p>\n<p>These are the \u201cnonpartisan\u201d organizations working to harvest young votes for Democrats and leftist causes. And they\u2019re offering some \u201cswag\u201d to accomplish their mission. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey\u2019re all part of the ecosystem of groups, the Soros-funded monsters trying to subvert the integrity of our elections,\u201d Proctor, the Kansas state representative said. <\/p>\n<h2>Enforcing Election Law Violations<\/h2>\n<p>There have been some high-profile cases of voter registration and other election fraud crimes over the past few weeks. <\/p>\n<p>Earlier this month, law enforcement officials arrested James Brass, 47, also known as \u201cLord,\u201d of Victorville, California, on a federal grand jury indictment charging him and two other defendants with paying people on Skid Row in downtown Los Angeles to sign petitions using stolen identities of registered voters to qualify initiatives on ballots in California elections.\u00a0Also charged in the two-count indictment, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/opa\/pr\/six-charged-california-kansas-and-louisiana-illegally-voting-fraudulent-voter-registration\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">according to<\/a> the Department of Justice, were two petition circulators who worked for Brass: Courtney Price, 49, of Jacksonville, Florida, and Jateisha Herron, 33, of Boron, California. <\/p>\n<p>Elsewhere, a federal grand jury\u2019s indictment charged Bridget Johnson, 53, of Cotton Valley, La. with fraudulent voter registration and voting by an illegal alien, and Michael Wedderburn, 52, of Jamaica, with voting as an illegal alien. <\/p>\n<p>Also this month, the DOJ <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/opa\/pr\/department-justice-charges-16-individuals-illegal-voting-and-related-election-crimes\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">announced<\/a> charges against 16 people in connection with illegal voting, illegal voter registration, and related election-fraud schemes from Idaho to New Jersey. <\/p>\n<p>And the U.S. Attorney\u2019s office for the Kansas District has been busy. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/usao-ks\/pr\/peruvian-national-indicted-illegally-voting\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">On Sept. 10,<\/a> a federal grand jury in Wichita \u201creturned an indictment charging a Peruvian national with multiple criminal offenses arising from allegedly voting in a federal election despite not being a United States citizen.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWith another election looming, the Department\u2019s effort serves as a stark reminder to individuals who are not legally authorized to vote not to engage in this conduct,\u201d Kriegshauser said. \u201cShould individuals be determined by a court of law to have illegally claimed U.S. citizenship and voted or attempted to vote in federal elections, they will face serious criminal consequences.\u201d <\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Matt Kittle is a senior elections correspondent for The Federalist. An <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-knew-100-percent-he-was-fighting-for-the-little-guy-former-top-trump-economic-adviser\/\" title=\"Trump Knew ...100 Percent\u2019 He Was ...Fighting for the Little Guy\u2019: Former Top Trump Economic Adviser\">award-winning investigative reporter<\/a> and 30-year veteran of print, broadcast, and online journalism, Kittle previously served as the executive director of Empower Wisconsin.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>LWV accused of paying students to register in Kansas<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":656,"featured_media":2671721,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Screenshot-2026-09-28-at-1.23.17-AM-1024x579.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[83907,86340,36160,50432,32570],"class_list":["post-2671720","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-election-scandal","tag-league-of-women-voters","tag-political-controversy","tag-voter-registration-2","tag-voting-rights"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Screenshot-2026-09-28-at-1.23.17-AM-1024x579.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2671720","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/656"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2671720"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2671720\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2671723,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2671720\/revisions\/2671723"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2671721"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2671720"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2671720"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2671720"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}