Thread by @il_fps

Illinois is one of nine states targeted by Michael Flynn for “election integrity.” Here’s a thread on what this means for democracy and elections in our state & why it’s really disturbing. #twill

Frontline reported on Michael Flynn’s national “The America Project” last month, which brings together “election deniers, mask and vaccine opponents, insurrectionists, Proud Boys, & elected officials & leaders in state & local Republican parties” pbs.org/wgbh/frontline…

“The America Project has given ~$5M to ‘grassroots organizations’ around the country. Many of the groups back what they call ‘election integrity,’ often used by election deniers to justify making it more difficult to vote based on falsehood that American elections are corrupt.”

There’s been reporting in MI (bridgemi.com/michigan-gover…) and TX texastribune.org/2022/09/30/ope… & NC (chathamnewsrecord.com/stories/nc-gro…) But we haven’t seen any in IL. Hence this thread!

In IL, groups/websites include Illinois for America First, Illinois Freedom Alliance, the IL Election Integrity Program, IL Conservative Union (aka West Suburban Patriots), Save-Illinois.us, IL Fair Elections.

Hard to tell what’s a group & what’s a page, & who’s connected officially to who. Illinois for America First is directly connected to Flynn’s The America Project. IL Conservative Union lists a coalition that includes the IL Republican Party (web.archive.org/web/2022100404…)

Is IL Conservative Union's IEIP connected to The America Project? Not clear. They do refer to the “Virginia Model” & to software used in NC chathamnewsrecord.com/stories/nc-gro…
which seems to be software that The America Project uses...(more on that below)

These groups are holding trainings on "election integrity." Some trainings are branded as Operation Eagles Wings; they’ve been held around the state: Elk Grove Village, Cary, Moline and Maryville. web.archive.org/web/2022090817…

There are two training manuals online from IL America First (web.archive.org/web/2022100403…)

A poll watcher’s guide: electionobserver.us/files/Illinois…

And an election integrity manual: electionobserver.us/files/Illinois…

They both start off by claiming that our election systems aren’t free or fair and things like early voting and vote by mail have enabled “criminal vote fraud”

Some of the content is standard poll watcher instructions, and then some of it is things like this—recommending recruiting “patriot insiders” at senior living centers… (p. 6 of poll watcher guide)

The IL for America First manuals link to various online forms run by The America Project for making incident reports (e.g. electionobserver.us/monitoring/cgi…)

And also refer to a software system Statewide Election Integrity Reporting System seirs.vqventure.com which is being used in NC (mentioned above...)

These are long docs & we’re a small, under resourced org. Hopefully, someone else will continue reading and flagging the content!

The IL Election Integrity Page web.archive.org/web/2022100404… has this info about mail-in ballot drop box watching where they say not to do it & that it is dangerous, but then give a long list of tips of how to do it. 😳

Although Frontline reported on The America Project connection to IL 4 weeks ago, it only came to our attention after another Leadership Institute training scheduled for this coming weekend in Downers Grove was cancelled.

(We coordinated a press conf at a previous Leadership Institute training last month in Des Plaines to highlight the hate that the groups being trained are spreading in Chicago burbs) ilfps.org/pressconf_to_e…

The Downers Grove 10/8 event was advertised in conjunction with many of the groups mentioned above as well as Awake IL and a church in Aurora, Kingdom Impact Revival and Impact Center [sic] turnaroundillinois.com

That training was to take place at the DG Hilton & was scheduled as part of an event headlining Patrick Byrne, Michael Flynn’s main partner in The America Project, and lots of other questionable ppl (see this thread

https://twitter.com/wjk1971/status/1576187018345938946

)

Also on that line up, was a known Proud Boys associate who has been harassing DG supporters of LGBTQ+ inclusivity at the DG library and high school district (yes, same guy who was on @WTTW in September as a “concerned parent” supporting book bans 🤦)

What does all this mean for IL’s general election next month and the local elections in April 2023?

We don’t know, but seeding distrust of our voting system among groups of ppl who are driven by conspiracies, have easy access to firearms...

...overlap in membership with white nationalist groups and participants in Jan 6th seems like something that the media should be covering in-depth & those running our election system should be responding to. Super yikes.

IL-FPS' primary area of work is advocating for strong public schools---ones that can support a healthy, multi-cultural, multi-racial democracy. Public schools & the public good can't exist without a robust democratic (small d!) governance system. This should matter to everyone...

More national reporting on what's happening from @VotebeatUS votebeat.org/2022/9/30/2338…

"Election officials fear a surge of conspiracy believers are signing up for [poll watcher] positions & are being trained by others who have propagated the lie spread by former Pres. Trump & his allies that 2020 pres. election was riddled w/fraud." apnews.com/article/2022-m…