Neil Makhija wins 2 Emmys for film about voter fraud

Indian American politician Neil Makhija, serving as Montgomery County Commissioner in Pennsylvania, won two Emmy Awards for a short film he co-produced to combat widespread misinformation about voter fraud in the United States.

The six-minute film, “You’re Being Lied To About Voter Fraud. Here’s the Truth,” was published by The New York Times in October. It won in two categories: outstanding graphic design and art direction in news, and outstanding art direction/set decoration/scenic design in documentary. 

Reacting to the win, Makhija said in a social media post, “We won two Emmys! I’m still processing this incredible honor. When we set out to create this film, we had one primary goal: to combat the lie that American elections are rife with fraud and to inspire other local officials to play offense to protect voting rights.”

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“At a time when misinformation is constantly spread by the most powerful people in the world, we chose not to grow tired, but to respond powerfully with truth and storytelling,” he wrote. 

The film is an animated op-ed that blends Makhija’s video essay narration and written perspective with watercolor illustrations by artist Molly Crabapple, as well as time-lapse animation by Jim Batt and Max Boekbinder, transforming the subject of local election administration into an engaging visual narrative.

The video begins with his voiceover explaining how election misinformation led him to scale up his democratic outreach, saying, “When I took office as chair of the board of elections, I found that the lies about our elections had become worse than ever… Every public meeting is full of conspiracy theories.”  

“Thanks to the amazing artistry of Molly Crabapple’s beautiful watercolor illustrations and the mesmerizing time-lapse animation by Jim Batt and Max Boekbinder of Sharp As Knives, we transformed the seemingly mundane topic of local election administration into something that captivates and inspires,” Makhija wrote.

Dedicating the award, he wrote, “it belongs to so many people: the county team and 2,900 election workers across Montgomery County’s 430 precincts who do the real work of democracy,” as well as the production team and partners at Democracy First and The New York Times.

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“We honor them through our courage and commitment to the work of democracy, which is more than casting a ballot. It’s having the meaningful chance to shape our own future. Now that this film has national recognition, we hope more people will be inspired to get engaged locally and take steps to protect democracy,” he added.

Makhija chairs the Montgomery County Board of Elections and oversees a billion-dollar budget and 3,000 county employees. Born and raised in Carbon County, Pennsylvania, Makhija is the child of Indian immigrants who came to the United States in search of opportunity. 

Prior to elected office, Makhija taught election law at the University of Pennsylvania Law School and served as executive director of Indian American Impact, a civic engagement organization. He earned his juris doctor from Harvard Law School and his bachelor of arts from Sarah Lawrence College.