September 14, 2012
CHRISTINA HALL, DETROIT FREE PRESS
Macomb County Clerk/Register of Deeds Carmella Sabaugh is defying the Michigan Secretary of State, saying she’ll use applications to vote that don’t contain the U.S. citizenship question in the November election.
Oakland County plans to use the forms with the citizenship question, and Wayne County officials did not return calls from the Free Press.
Applications with the U.S. citizenship question — used by many municipalities in the August primary — have sparked controversy since Michigan Secretary of State Ruth Johnson ordered the question put on ballot applications before the presidential primary in February.
At the time, there was no legislation requiring the citizenship question, but the Legislature passed the law in June.
Gov. Rick Snyder vetoed the bill, saying it would create undue confusion for voters and poll workers.
Sabaugh cited Snyder’s veto as a reason for not using the new voter applications and said the old applications require voters to affirm they’re a qualified elector, which includes citizenship. She said she’s concerned the applications with the question will cause confusion like it did in August, adding another hurdle for voters and slowing down lines at the polls.
“It’s a matter of a voter’s right,” Sabaugh said. “As a clerk, I want all people who are registered voters to vote.”
By midday in the August election, the Secretary of State sent a clarification to clerks telling them to read a statement to voters who refuse to fill in the question and then issue them a ballot.
Secretary of State spokeswoman Gisgie Gendreau said state law gives Johnson the authority to prescribe forms like the ballot application, and she wants to use ones with the citizenship question.
She said Johnson wants to ensure noncitizens get one last chance not to vote, pointing out they could be committing a felony, have large legal fees, be deported or have problems pursuing U.S. citizenship.
Gendreau said the office would have a conversation with Sabaugh. Her office said director of elections Christopher Thomas called Wednesday to get more information about Sabaugh’s position but made no requests at that time.
Glenn Rehahn, 62, of Shelby Township said he’s glad Sabaugh plans to use applications without the citizenship question. He called the county elections department after he was turned away from voting in August because he didn’t answer the question.
When the county told him he did not have to answer it, he said he went back to the polls and could only vote after verbally affirming he was a citizen.
“I was being denied to vote for my right on these issues over my citizenship, which has never been questioned,” Rehahn said. “I shouldn’t have to jump through one more hoop to cast my ballot.”
Patricia Selby, election counsel and manager for Project Vote, applauded Sabaugh’s decision, saying the citizenship question adds “chaos and confusion” at the polls.
The Michigan Election Coalition sent a letter dated Sept. 4 to Johnson and Thomas, urging them to remove the citizen checkbox from applications to vote and absentee voter ballot applications to be used in the November election. It also asked that they prohibit local officials from requiring registered voters to provide proof of their citizenship as a condition of voting.
“Our interest is that we don’t want that question on the forms. We think it’s just another hurdle for voters to go through and it’s not authorized,” Selby said. READ MORE