O'Keefe and Higby face felony charges for unlawful voting in Minnesota primary

Conservative activists James O'Keefe and Cam Higby have been charged with unlawful voting and identity theft in Minnesota. Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty announced the felony charges at a news conference on Wednesday.

Moriarty said O'Keefe, 42, of West Palm Beach, Florida, and Higby, 26, of Covington, Washington, wore costumes and used the names of registered state voters. They began the "vouching" process during the state's primary election on August 11.

“the system for identifying misconduct and responding to it functioned well during the primary”

The vouching process allows unregistered voters without proof of address to register and vote after signing an oath of eligibility. Poll workers became suspicious of the men's behavior and reported it to authorities.

Moriarty stated that the system for identifying misconduct and responding to it functioned well during the primary. The men recorded their exchanges for a video intended to expose vulnerabilities in state voting laws.

O'Keefe founded Project Veritas and was later ousted as its leader. He gained notoriety by publishing undercover sting-style videos, including one made at Minnesota polling places.

Neither man has entered a plea, and court records do not name an attorney for either of them. O'Keefe was not immediately available for comment, and Higby did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment.