REPORT: US Has Weaker Election Security Measures Than Rwanda, Nevada Ranks Dead Last

According to a 37-nation study released today (see below) by Illinois-based The Meyers Report “The US has the worst voting system of the countries studied,” said Gary Meyers, one of the authors of the report. “In terms of written procedures, the US comes significantly behind Kenya, Mexico, Chile, Ghana, Italy and Rwanda.”

“The US is supposed to be the shining beacon on the hill for democracy, yet we are the only country surveyed that uses the honor system in any election process of the countries surveyed,” said Jay Delancy, founder of Voter Integrity Project-NC and a co-author of the study. “The key issues of weakness are mail-in ballots and touch screen voting machines which are not secure and do not have hard paper ballots for recounts,” said Meyers.

Not only is the U.S. ranked worse than Rwanda, but so is Nevada. On a scale of zero to 100, Nevada scored a pathetic 30 points. The U.S scored a 59.9. The scale was based on various metrics related to election rules, universal mail-in balloting, ballot harvesting, and voter ID requirements to vote or receive a ballot.

According to those metrics, it is understandable why Nevada failed in every category.

For background, the Democratic majority in the Nevada legislature ushered in sweeping changes to state election laws during the pandemic. Legislation passed in 2021 legalized unlimited ballot harvesting, ballots by mail to all actively-registered voters, and extended deadlines for mail-in ballots. The extended deadlines for ballots without postmarks was upheld by the Nevada Supreme Court and the higher court inferred language into the legislation.

For perspective on how extended deadlines for counting mail-in ballots erodes voter confidence and sows distrust, the 2024 general election for control of the U.S. Senate and GOP gains in the Nevada legislature is noteworthy.

By election day on November 5, Nevada Senator Jacky Rosen’s challenger Captain Sam Brown maintained a comfortable lead, and down-ballot GOP challengers had leads from one to four percent.

Yet, as ballots continued to be counted after November 5, the GOP lost any and all narrow gains that would have secured a larger majority in the U.S. Senate and larger minority in the state Assembly.

Election Day mail ballot drop offs in Clark County–delivered by the UPS after Election Day and included unsecured drop boxes, totaled an approximate 55,000 ballot drop and was +34 Rosen. Down-ballot democratic candidates gained an approximate 2 percent lead on the drop, according to a GOP data analyst. Nevada’s election results were finalized weeks after election day.

According to data provided by the Secretary of State, three Assembly Democrats were elected by less than one-percent margins, including the Democratic Speaker of the Nevada Assembly who vowed that any legislation introduced by Governor Joe Lombardo and GOP legislators to restore trust and security in Nevada’s elections would be “dead on arrival.” And, it was. Any and all election integrity bills were shelved.

In 2026, Nevada voters will have a chance to improve the security of Nevada’s election by passing Question 7, a Voter ID measure that first passed with 72 percent support in 2024. If the measure passes again, Voter ID will be a constitutional amendment and will require that Nevada residents present a form of photo identification to verify their identity while voting in person, or to verify their identity using the last four digits of their driver’s license or social security number when voting by mail.

Governor Lombardo’s presumed Democratic challenger Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford previously told The Globe that voter ID was “unconstitutional.”

On the national level, President Trump has repeatedly vowed to end universal mail balloting. During his meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders this week,  Trump declared, “”Mail-in ballots are corrupt.” “Mail-in ballots, you can never have a real democracy with mail-in ballots, and we as a Republican Party are going to do everything possible that we get rid of mail-in ballots. We’re going to start with an executive order that’s being written right now by the best lawyers in the country to end mail-in ballots because they’re corrupt.” Trump continued:

“And, you know, that we’re the only country in the world, I believe I may be wrong, but just about the only country in the world that uses [mail-in ballots] because of what’s happened, massive fraud all over the place. The other thing we want, change of the machines. For all of the money they spend, it’s approximately 10 times more expensive than paper ballots. And paper ballots are very sophisticated with the watermark paper and everything else, we would get secure elections. We get much faster results, the machines, I mean, they say we’re going to have the results in two weeks with paper ballots. You have the results that night. Most people almost have, but most people in many countries use paper ballots. It’s the most secure form.”

“It’s a fraud,” Trump said, adding: “It’s time that the Republicans get tough and stop it because the Democrats want it, it’s the only way they can get elected.”

After a review of The Meyers Report, one has to wonder if Democrats could get elected in Rwanda.