Full Breakdown
Two Men Charged After Disguised Attempt to Vote in Minnesota Polling Place
By Drooid · · How we work
In this breakdown
01
Incident Overview
In August, a video posted to social media showed two men—identified in charging documents as Higby and O’Keefe—wearing a black abaya that covered the face and a white thobe with a kufi, respectively. Both adopted fake foreign accents and claimed to be Muslim voters while standing outside a Hennepin County polling location. The men left the site after poll workers requested identification and did not cast any ballots, according to the charging documents.
02
Legal Charges
They are also accused of identity theft because O’Keefe allegedly used multiple identities not his own with the intent to facilitate the unlawful activity. The charges are felony counts, reflecting the seriousness with which the county treats false identity claims in the electoral process.
03
Official Response
Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty emphasized that the political motives or offensive nature of the disguises are not the basis for the charges. She stated that the core legal issue is the act of misidentifying oneself to election officials, regardless of intent to vote. Moriarty stressed that the decision to pursue felony charges rests on statutory violations, not on the men’s political views or the performative aspects of their conduct.
04
Verbatim Quotes
- “It is not against the law to be performative, it is not against the law to be offensive, it is not against the law to say the things they said standing outside the polling place,” — Mary Moriarty, hennepin county attorney
The case underscores Minnesota’s enforcement of statutes aimed at preserving the integrity of voter identification procedures, even when no actual vote is cast.