Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach issued a rule Thursday that incomplete voter registrations will be canceled after 90 days. The decision came after voting rights groups lodged vigorous objections to the time limit. The rule takes effect Oct. 2. More than 35,000 voter registrations applications are currently “in suspense,” and about 30,000 are incomplete because registrants have yet to provide a passport or birth certificate. Such proof-of-citizenship documents have been required since January 2013, but no limit had been placed on how long county election officials had to keep the incomplete registrations. “It really violates the spirit of what our nation, our Constitution, was built on — the participation of all,” Marge Ahrens, co-president of the League of Women Voters of Kansas, said about Kobach’s decision. “It feels so disrespectful of Kansans,” she said.
Doug Bonney, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas, said Kobach should have at least increased the time limit from his 90-day proposal. “That’s disappointing because 90 days just isn’t sufficient to allow busy people to correct the deficiencies in their voter registrations,” Bonney said.
No doubt the rule will depress the number of people who complete the registration process, he said. The ACLU will review the rule and will consider whether filing a lawsuit is appropriate, he said.
Full Article: Kobach issues 90-day time limit for voter registrations | The Kansas City Star.
The Voting News
A News Service of the Verified Voting Foundation
