By Freeda Cathcart

The integrity of our democracy rests on the foundation of a fair election process. Some citizens believe that it doesn’t matter if they vote, while some organizations try to block or discourage people from voting. Our area needs an organization to educate and protect our election process. One nonpartisan organization whose mission is to encourage people to vote and to protect voter’s rights is the League of Women Voters.

Voter registration fraud may have been a coordinated effort concentrated in key battleground states to undermine our election process. Colin Small was arrested in nearby Rockingham County for throwing away completed voter registrations. Marsha Garst, the Virginia prosecutor overseeing the case told The Washington Post that her office is trying to figure out if Small acted on his own or under instructions from his employers when he threw out the completed voter registrations. Small worked for the GOP operative Nathan Sproul’s firm Strategic Allied Consulting. Sproul has faced allegations of voter suppression and dirty tricks for years. The investigation has spread to Florida and Colorado, where one of his employees is being investigated for tearing up a Democratic voter registration form.

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 Cathcart was a candidate for the 17th House of Delegates in 2011 and can be reached at FreedaWorks@gmail.com.