January 28, 2022

Alliance Takes More Action to Protect Voting Rights

The Alliance called on the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) on Thursday to stop permitting state elections offices to require that people provide their full Social Security numbers when submitting a voter registration form, explaining in a public comment letter that such requirements violate federal laws that protect the right to vote and prevent identity theft and fraud.

“The U.S. Election Commission has allowed at least four states to violate the U.S. Constitution and several federal laws by requiring the collection of full Social Security numbers on their voter registration forms,” said Richard Fiesta, Executive Director of the Alliance, referring to Tennessee, Kentucky, New Mexico, and Virginia. “This practice creates a burden for Americans trying to exercise their constitutional right to vote and also puts them at a higher risk of identity theft, financial scams and fraud.”

In addition, last Friday the Texas Alliance sent a demand letter to Texas Secretary of State John B. Scott stating that his decision to limit the number of voter registration forms his office provides to the Texas Alliance and other voter registration organizations is a violation of the National Voter Registration Act (“NVRA”).

The letter stated that Scott’s decision is a change from the former practice of providing voter registration forms to voter registration organizations based upon the organization’s needs.

In response to the letter, copies of voter registration forms were made available last weekend, just days before the deadline to register for the March 1 Texas primary elections.

“Limiting access to voter registration forms is yet another way that the state of Texas has made it harder to vote,” said Gene Lantz, President of the Texas Alliance. “Saying that the price of paper has gone up, which is one excuse that has been reported, when the state has a $7.85 billion surplus, just does not make sense.”