U.S. District: Kansas can request U.S. citizenship proof from voters
After an unsuccessful appeal to a federal court, residents in Kansas will have to provide proof of citizenship to register as voters.
Last week, U.S. District Judge Richard Leon ruled that Kansas, Alabama and Georgia are permitted to ask for proof of U.S. citizenship before the vote. The judge ruled against a coalition of voter advocacy groups including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the U.S. Justice Department.
While the ruling permits states to assess citizenship status of its voters, residents of the other states affected by this ruling asked only that voters swear they are U.S. citizens, not show material proof.
Kansas’ comparatively strict voter registration laws — which have been tightened by Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach — have had mixed successes in court. In May, a U.S. district judge ruled against state election officials’ attempt to block voters registering at the DMV without proof of U.S. citizenship. The judge ordered Kobach’s office to register thousands of affected voters.
Kansas’ secretary of state office found a new ally in the Election Assistance Commission after Kansas Republican and Kobach ally Brian Newby was appointed as executive director of the group. Before Newby, the federal election board had denied Kobach’s request that voter registration forms include proof of U.S. citizenship. Under Newby, the new regulations were expeditiously and unilaterally adopted for Kansas and the two other states that requested them.
The Associated Press reports only three cases of voter fraud have been recorded between 1995 and 2013. About 14 non-citizens have attempted to register during the same time.
INFOBOX: Voter registration can be completed at county election offices or at voteks.org. Passports, birth certificates, naturalization documents and military records are all accepted forms of proof of U.S. citizenship.
Register to vote by July 12 to vote in the Aug. 2 state primary. Each of the seats in the state senate and house of representatives is up for election this year.
