The Government Accountability Office said it would investigate President Trump’s voter fraud commission after three Democratic senators requested a review of the controversial panel.
The GAO notified Sens. Cory Booker, of New Jersey, Michael Bennet, of Colorado, and Amy Klobuchar, of Minnesota, on Wednesday it would begin a review of the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity (PACEI) in roughly five months after determining their request is “within the scope of its authority.”
The three senators sent Gene Dodaro, the comptroller general of the United States, a letter last week asking the GAO to investigate the voter fraud commission. Specifically, the senators requested the agency examine how much money is being spent on the commission, its efforts to address voter participation, and the steps the voter fraud panel is taking to protect voter information it collects.
The senators said the commission has ignored congressional inquiries about its activities and said documents that have been made public are “cause for serious concern.” Additionally, they said press reports have raised questions “about the partisan motives and actions” of the voter fraud commission.
“Without any PACEI response to congressional inquiries, we fear that the manner in which the PACEI is conducting its work will prevent the public from a full and transparent understanding of the Commission’s conclusions and unnecessarily diminish confidence in our democratic process,” the senators said.
Since its creation in May, Trump’s voter fraud commission has come under scrutiny.
The president decided to form the panel after claiming millions of people voted illegally in the 2016 election, which ultimately cost him the popular vote.
But the commission has been criticized for a lack of transparency, and there have been concerns it was created in an attempt to suppress voter turnout.
