None of the counties whose general election results are scheduled to be audited are in NKY, according to Attorney General Daniel Cameron.
While some NKY candidates — and others around the state — alleged voter fraud, the audits are conducted randomly each election season and are not done as a result of suspected fraud.
The audits will occur in Jefferson, Webster, Shelby, Rowan, Oldham, Laurel, LaRue, Owen, Anderson, Christian, Daviess, and Breathitt Counties. The AG’s Department of Criminal Investigations will conduct the audits.
“Our office is committed to protecting the integrity of our elections by conducting post-election audits,” Cameron said. “I am thankful to our Department of Criminal Investigations, the county clerks, and their staff for working together to perform these audits to ensure Kentucky’s elections remain free and fair.”
The audits come as false allegations of election fraud swept the nation after the 2020 election when Former President Donald Trump falsely stated that President Joe Biden stole the election.
In Northern Kentucky, Jessica Neal, the second-place finisher in the 24th Senate District race, requested a recount. Neal further appealed a decision that certified the race in favor of Shelley Funke Frommeyer after a recount found that the vote tally didn’t change. Frommeyer went on to win the general election against Democrat Rene Heinrich.
Neal, a member of the Campbell County Republican Party’s election integrity committee, has pushed conspiracy theories about elections in Kentucky and their potential for fraud.
“It was a pretty close race, and I firmly believe in making sure we have secure elections,” Neal said in May on her reasoning for a recount. Secretary of State Michael G. Adams, also a Republican, called Neal’s efforts “frivolous.”
The newly expanded ability of the Attorney General’s office came from Senate Bill 216, which allows the office to audit not fewer than five percent of Kentucky counties to not fewer than 12 counties.
In the spring, 12 other counties were selected to receive primary election audits: Nicholas, Monroe, Graves, Metcalfe, Jackson, Hopkins, Pendleton, Boyd, Madison, Powell, Rockcastle, and Grayson Counties. The post-election audits conducted by DCI in each of these counties did not uncover any criminal conduct.