In data obtained separately from the County Demographer and County Office of Elections, Supervisor Vega’s office found that there were nearly 16,000 more registered voters at the time of last year’s election than there were citizens residing in the county aged 18 or above according to the 2019 U.S. Census Bureau population estimates.
An e-mail obtained from the Office of Elections, acting head, Phillip Campbell (the previous Office of Elections head, Michelle White, mysteriously resigned without any explanation given to the BOCS earlier this year), revealed that there were 306,798 registered Prince William County voters in November of 2020. However, a separate e-mail from the County Demographer, at the request of a constituent, showed that according to the US Census July 2019 American Community Survey (ACS) 1-Year Estimates, retrieved from data.census.gov there were only 290,939 citizens aged 18 or older residing in the county. According to Prince William County estimates, the population of the county grew by less than 4,400 residents between July 1, 2019 and December 31, 2020. How many of the 4,400 registered to vote is unknown. However, if you assume every single new resident of the county was an American citizen over the age of 18 and immediately registered to vote here it would still leave over 11,000 more registered voters in the county than what’s even possible.
Comparing the latest numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau with the number of people the county says is registered to vote reveals that 105% of the eligible VEP (Voting Eligible Population) is registered to vote in Prince William County – a statistical impossibility if the standard is accurate recordkeeping.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 70% of the eligible VEP nationwide was registered to vote. 50% less than the statistical impossibility of 105% in Prince William County.
Supervisor Vega plans on probing the data further with county officials on behalf of her constituents to see how such a discrepancy exists. She does not believe the issue in Prince William County tipped any statewide or congressional elections from one candidate to another in last year’s general election, but absolutely believes we must have accurate and realistic voter rolls to ensure confidence of Prince William County citizens and candidates in more closely contested elections. It is also a reflection of good and efficient government that the taxpayers of Prince William County should expect in return for their money.
– Coles District Staff