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Ferretti warns permissive absentee-ballot return rules enable "vote harvesting"
Summary
On air, the candidate and host contrasted Illinois's permissive absentee-ballot return rules with neighboring states that limit who may return ballots, and the candidate warned that broad return authority risks "vote harvesting."
The interview addressed who may return an absentee ballot in Illinois and whether permissive rules create opportunities for improper influence. Berkowitz noted that in Illinois "anybody that the voter authorizes" may submit an absentee ballot; Ferretti said that differs from neighboring states that limit returners to family members.
Ferretti warned the permissive rule could permit what he called vote harvesting: "Any drunk, anybody you can find on the street, that becomes a legal vote harvesting," he said, arguing a family-member limitation would reduce that risk. The host and guest did not cite on-air data quantifying such incidents; no prosecutions or specific cases were identified during the segment.
