By Phillip C. Parrish, Retired U.S. Navy Lieutenant Commander, Farmer, Teacher, Administrator, and Candidate for Governor of Minnesota in 2026
As a Minnesotan who’s served our nation on Navy ships, tilled our land as a farmer, and taught our kids the value of truth in the classroom, I’m no stranger to fighting for what’s right. That’s why I sat through every minute of the Minnesota House Fraud Prevention and State Agency Oversight Committee’s hearing on October 14, 2025 (watch it here). What I saw wasn’t accountability—it was a masterclass in dodging the real issues plaguing our elections. Coming just days after the October 10, 2025, Secretary of State (SOS) rulemaking hearing, this pattern of sidestepping is alarming. As your candidate for governor in 2026, I’m calling it out: Minnesota’s voter rolls are contaminated, and the weak oversight isn’t fixing it. We must act now to secure our elections before 2026.
A Hearing That Promised Answers but Delivered Excuses
The October 14 hearing, chaired by Rep. Kristin Robbins (R-37A), was billed as a deep dive into election registration processes and potential misuse of state funds for partisan activities. Secretary of State Steve Simon, Minnesota’s chief election officer, faced questions about voter roll integrity and the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), a multi-state data-sharing system meant to flag duplicates and ineligible voters. Simon leaned hard on successes: two absentee ballots caught in Itasca County last year, or the June 2025 fraud charges against two individuals for illegal registrations, touted by the U.S. Attorney’s office. He boasted that audits catch “99%” of issues and cited Minnesota’s strict data privacy laws to justify stonewalling a September 2025 DOJ lawsuit demanding voter lists to check for non-citizens.
But here’s the problem: Simon never addressed the elephant in the room. What happens when a contested ballot—say, from a double-voter, a non-citizen, or someone using a maiden and married name across addresses—slips through before it’s flagged? It gets counted. By the time ERIC’s post-election reports catch these issues, as they did in a 2025 Pennsylvania double-voting case from 2020, the election’s over. There’s no mechanism to undo counted votes, even if fraud is confirmed later. Minnesota law allows pre-election challenges, but post-election? It’s just audits and referrals to the Attorney General, which vanish into a black hole.
Missed Opportunities and Weak Follow-Through
Rep. Robbins tried pressing Simon around the 45-minute mark, questioning how ERIC handles mismatches and why there’s no real-time purge of questionable registrations. But the exchange fizzled into procedural jargon, with Simon circling back to “the system’s secure.” Robbins had the chance to push harder but didn’t. This isn’t new—just four days earlier, the October 10 SOS rulemaking hearing on absentee ballots and voter registration amendments ended with public comments open until October 30, but no concrete action. These half-measures dodge the root issue: our voter rolls are riddled with duplicates, out-of-state voters, multi-address registrations, and potentially ineligible non-citizens. A 2022 audit found hundreds of duplicates in just six counties, and ERIC’s after-the-fact reports aren’t cleaning the mess fast enough.
Where was the urgency? Why wasn’t Attorney General Keith Ellison called to explain why his office hasn’t prosecuted a single flagged fraud case, despite hundreds of millions lost to scams like Feeding Our Future? On October 13, Ellison was busy announcing consumer protection coalitions—nothing on elections. Where were the feds? The DOJ is suing Simon for voter data to root out non-citizens, yet no federal auditors were invited to scrutinize ERIC live. This was a state-only show, per the agenda, with no subpoenas or joint task force to force accountability.
Rep. Quam and the Rules That Need Fixing
Then there’s Rep. Duane Quam (R-25A), co-chair of House Elections, who’s been vocal on integrity. He grilled Simon in July 2025 over the DOJ data refusal and pushed HF1378 for election overhauls. A late-2024 court ruling in HD40B invalidated a Democratic win, flipping House control and exposing procedural flaws. The judge’s call was clear: pull non-compliant election rules back into committee to align with state and federal law, like the Help America Vote Act (HAVA). Yet, as of October 14, there’s no motion, no filings, and no buzz on X from Quam (@RepDuaneQuam) to act. With his role on House Administration, he could force a review, but session chaos and his own fizzled recall effort might be stalling the fight. Minnesotans deserve better than this inertia.
The Questions They Dodged—And We Must Ask
As a 2026 gubernatorial candidate, I’m furious at this limp oversight. Minnesotans, we need answers:
• Attorney General Ellison: Why zero prosecutions on flagged election fraud cases? Your office sits on referrals while our rolls stay contaminated. Explain yourself.
• Secretary Simon and Chair Robbins: Where were the feds to audit ERIC in real time, not just file post-election reports? Why let double-voters, multi-state phantoms, and questionable registrations taint our counts?
• Rep. Quam: That judge’s call to fix non-compliant rules was crystal clear. When will you pull them back into committee to ensure compliance with state and federal law? No more delays.
Time to Act: Secure 2026 Now
Minnesotans, our voter rolls are a mess, and the system’s built to catch fraud after it’s too late. ERIC’s hashed data swaps help, but they’re not enough—flagged issues don’t undo counted votes. Gov. Tim Walz’s administration, backed by Ellison, stonewalls federal oversight while hiding behind “privacy.” As your governor, I’ll demand real-time purges, independent audits, and full HAVA enforcement—no more Band-Aids.
We can’t wait for another cycle. Here’s how you can help secure 2026:
• Pressure the Committee: Email Rep. Kristin Robbins at rep.kristin.robbins@house.mn.gov and demand follow-through.
• Tag Rep. Quam: Hit him on X (@RepDuaneQuam) and push for those rules to be pulled back for compliance.
• Comment Now: Submit feedback on the SOS rulemaking by October 30 athttps://minnesotaoah.granicusideas.com/discussions/39440-office-of-the-minnesota-secretary-of-state-initial-post-hearing-comment-period at: https://minnesotaoah.granicusideas.com/discussions/39440-office-of-the-minnesota-secretary-of-state-initial-post-hearing-comment-period
• Spread the Word: Share this article and rally your neighbors to demand fraud-free elections.
Join me at parrish4mn.com to fight for transparent, secure elections. Our survival is on the line, and 2026 starts now.
Phillip C. Parrish is a retired U.S. Navy Lieutenant Commander, farmer, teacher, administrator, and candidate for Governor of Minnesota in 2026.
###