GOP's Voter Vault Database Hacked, Candidates' Identity Altered

The Northwest Indiana Times is reporting that the state GOP's Voter Vault database was hacked and the identities of two Lake County Republican candidates altered in an attempt to discredit them. The claims are made by Eric Krieg, a candidate for county surveyor, and Peter Karagan, a candidate for state representative.

"They changed me from a strong Republican to weak Democrat," said Eric Krieg, a Munster engineer. He is one of three men seeking the Republican nomination for county surveyor. "My first reaction was that it is ridiculously petty. I have never voted Democrat in my entire life."

Peter N. Karagan, a Munster real estate businessman, said, "I was downgraded to a strong Democrat. That doesn't describe me when I'm running in a Republican primary for state representative House District 12." He is one of two Republicans running for the seat.

The two want an investigation by the Indiana Republican Party to find who trashed their reputations with distorted party loyalty grades entered into Voter Vault, a national Republican voter database.

The Voter Vault database is primarily a tool for Republican party leaders and its candidates to obtain information about the past voting records of the state's registered voters. It typically includes a person's information concerning a person's registered voting address and the party ballot a person chose in the primary elections in which a voter has voted.