The U.S. Election Assistance Commission decided Friday that proof of citizenship requirements to register to vote would “likely hinder eligible citizens from registering to vote in federal elections.”
The Commission denied requests from Kansas, Arizona and Georgia to modify the federal voter registration form’s state-specific instructions for their respective states.
Last August, Arizona and Kansas officials sued the EAC to alter the national voter registration form so that the states’ residents are required to provide documentary proof-of-citizenship to register to vote. The states’ request undermined a key accomplishment of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, which created a simple federal voter registration form that all states are required to accept and use. This form does not currently require documentary proof of citizenship as applicants attest to their eligibility—including citizenship—under penalty of perjury.
In December, U.S. District Judge Eric Melgren, who is handling the lawsuit, ordered the EAC to make a decision on Kansas and Arizona’s requests by Friday. Project Vote is a defendant-intervenor in the case. The EAC then requested public comment on the matter and included Georgia, which has a similar law, in the decision. Project Vote and several voting rights groups offered comments.
According to Friday’s decision, “the requirements impose burdens on all registrants, and they are especially burdensome to those citizens who do not already possess the requisite documentation…Such burdens do not enhance voter participation, and they could result in a decrease in overall registration of eligible citizens.”
“This is a significant decision for all eligible voters underscoring the purpose of the National Voter Registration Act to remove barriers such as documentary proof of citizenship that prevent eligible citizens from registering to vote and voting,” Michelle Kanter Cohen, Project Vote’s election counsel, told the Associated Press.
“What we have seen where these laws have been implemented in Arizona and Kansas is that tens of thousands of eligible Americans have been rejected or suspended from the voter rolls, and community voter registration drives have been significantly hampered,” Kanter Cohen said.
The story continues, however. Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach told the Associated Press that he will continue to pursue the case. He said that if he cannot get a federal court order to change the national voter registration form with state-specific documentary proof requirements, he would institute a two-tier voter registration system that separates Kansans who register with the state form and the national form. Those who use the national form would only be allowed to vote in federal elections.
Photo by U.S. Government [Public domain] via Wikimedia Commons