election, when the resources of those offices should be directed at preparing ballots and staffing polling sites. It also risks overloading voter rolls with “deadwood” names, which in turn undermines public confidence in the election process. Thus, even when no fraudulent votes result from bounty-hunting, the fraudulent registrations that arise from this conduct are not victimless offenses. Federal prosecutors should be cognizant of these circumstances and, when evidence of fraudulent registrations inspired by bounty-hunting is discovered, should consider prosecuting the individuals submitting the false registrations, as well as, in appropriate circumstances, the organizations that employ and pay them, under Section 10307(c). (c) Vote-Buying The clause of Section 10307(c) that prohibits vote-buying does so in broad terms, covering any payment made or offered to a wouldbe voter “for registering to vote or for voting” in an election when the name of a federal candidate appears on the ballot. 19 Section 10307(c) applies as long as a pattern of vote-buying exposes a federal election to potential corruption, even though it cannot be shown that the threat materialized. This aspect of Section 10307(c), is directed at eliminating commercial considerations from the voting process. See United States v. Thomas, 510 F.3d 714, 717 (7th Cir. 2007); United States v. Garcia, 719 F.2d 99, 102 (5th Cir. 1983); United States v. Mason, 673 F.2d 737, 739 (4th Cir. 1982); United States v. Bowman, 636 F2d. 1003, 1012 (5th Cir. 1981). The statute rests on the premises that potential The federal criminal code contains another vote-buying statute, 18 U.S.C. § 597, which has a narrower scope and provides for lesser penalties than Section 10307(c). Section 597 prohibits making or offering to make an expenditure to any person to vote or withhold his or her vote for a federal candidate. Non-willful violations of Section 597 are one-year misdemeanors; willful violations are two-year felonies. Section 597 and 5 2 U . S . C . § 10307(c) are distinct offenses, since each requires proof of an element that the other does not. Whalen v. United States, 445 U.S. 684 (1980); Blockburger v. United States, 284 U.S. 299 (1932). Whereas Section 597 requires that the payment be made to influence a federal election, Section 10307(c) requires that the defendant acted “knowingly and willfully.” 19 43