Election conspiracy theories fuel dispute over voter fraud system

A bipartisan effort among states to combat voter fraud has found itself in the crosshairs of conspiracy theories fuelled by Donald Trump's false claims about the 2020 presidential election and now faces an uncertain future.

One state has dropped out, a second is in the process of doing so and a handful of other Republican-led states are deciding whether to stay.

The aim of the Electronic Registration Information Centre, a voluntary system known as ERIC, has been to help member states maintain accurate lists of registered voters by sharing data that allows officials to identify and remove people who have died or moved to other states.

Reports also help states identify and ultimately prosecute people who vote in multiple states.

In Maryland, state election officials have received reports through the system identifying some 66,000 potentially deceased voters and 778,000 people who may have moved out of state since 2013.

In Georgia, the system is credited with providing data to remove