To: State-level Secretaries of State & other election officials
Trump's vote suppressors want your private info
President Trump's new voting commission is a sham -- and it could pave the way for new, nationwide voter restrictions. Now, they’re asking for voters' private information -- which could be used for a nationwide "cross-check" program that will purge thousands of legitimate votes.
State officials should take their duty to voters seriously, and protect voters' rights and privacy by refusing to turn over private voter data to Trump's sham commission.
State officials should take their duty to voters seriously, and protect voters' rights and privacy by refusing to turn over private voter data to Trump's sham commission.
Why is this important?
When President Trump claimed without evidence that "millions voted illegally" in last year's election, he was roundly criticized by experts and election officials from both parties for falsely undermining faith in our democracy.
But rather than back down on his outlandish assertion, Trump doubled down -- ordering Vice President Mike Pence and Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach to "investigate" the integrity of our elections -- both of whom have backed Trump's irresponsible and incorrect claim.
Kobach is a particularly worrying pick given his history of voter suppression -- from leading the charge to demand documentary proof of citizenship from already legitimately registered voters, which courts later struck down as unconstitutional, to pushing a shady "cross-check" program that purges thousands of legitimate voters for no reason.
We don't buy it -- the Pence-Kobach commission’s real purpose is to justify the President's false claims about illegal voting, and to push policies that will put up barriers to participation for eligible Americans.
If they were really interested in dealing with voting problems, they would show how tactics like the ones Kobach has pushed in the past suppress eligible voters -- or cyber-security threats to our election infrastructure.
Now, they've sent letters to election officials across the states, asking them to turn over private voter information -- requesting the full name, address, party affiliation, voting history, and partial social security number of every registered voter in the country.
Many states’ laws protect how this information is used and shared. Turning everything over to the Pence-Kobach commission would permit Kobach to conduct a nationwide "cross-check" program -- a dubious tactic he says is to find illegal voters, but has flagged false positives in the past, and disenfranchised legitimate, eligible voters.
Officials in some states, like California, Massachusetts, Kentucky, and Virginia have already done the right thing and refused to turn over private data -- and every state should follow their example. Because the best way to truly uphold the integrity of our elections is by making sure every eligible voter can vote and have their vote counted-- not using false claims about illegal voting to suppress votes.
That's why we're calling on state election officials to put their duty to voters in their state before this partisan attack on voting rights -- and refuse to turn over voters' private information to this sham commission.
But rather than back down on his outlandish assertion, Trump doubled down -- ordering Vice President Mike Pence and Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach to "investigate" the integrity of our elections -- both of whom have backed Trump's irresponsible and incorrect claim.
Kobach is a particularly worrying pick given his history of voter suppression -- from leading the charge to demand documentary proof of citizenship from already legitimately registered voters, which courts later struck down as unconstitutional, to pushing a shady "cross-check" program that purges thousands of legitimate voters for no reason.
We don't buy it -- the Pence-Kobach commission’s real purpose is to justify the President's false claims about illegal voting, and to push policies that will put up barriers to participation for eligible Americans.
If they were really interested in dealing with voting problems, they would show how tactics like the ones Kobach has pushed in the past suppress eligible voters -- or cyber-security threats to our election infrastructure.
Now, they've sent letters to election officials across the states, asking them to turn over private voter information -- requesting the full name, address, party affiliation, voting history, and partial social security number of every registered voter in the country.
Many states’ laws protect how this information is used and shared. Turning everything over to the Pence-Kobach commission would permit Kobach to conduct a nationwide "cross-check" program -- a dubious tactic he says is to find illegal voters, but has flagged false positives in the past, and disenfranchised legitimate, eligible voters.
Officials in some states, like California, Massachusetts, Kentucky, and Virginia have already done the right thing and refused to turn over private data -- and every state should follow their example. Because the best way to truly uphold the integrity of our elections is by making sure every eligible voter can vote and have their vote counted-- not using false claims about illegal voting to suppress votes.
That's why we're calling on state election officials to put their duty to voters in their state before this partisan attack on voting rights -- and refuse to turn over voters' private information to this sham commission.