At our March 11 social hour, we were privileged to have as our speaker, Dr. John Lott Jr. John is an economist and a world-recognized expert on guns and crime as well as Senior Advisor to the Dept of Justice in 2 administrations. John presented on American elections and the concern over voter fraud. Beginning with some history on voting in the US, we learned that secret ballots were not the standard in all 50 states until 1950. And that in recent survey’s, 80 percent of Americans in both parties support a voter ID requirement. the U.S. is an outlier among the world’s democracies as 46 of the 47 countries in Europe require government-issued photo IDs to vote and the (the UK) is in the process of adopting it as well. John also discussed absentee voting issue as well and we learned 75% of Europe does not allow it.  It was an interesting and educational presentation that elicited many questions and a lively discussion.  As John is a Garden City resident, we expect to have him as a frequent presenter to the Chapter