“Voting by non-citizens is a federal crime, and states and counties that refuse to disclose all requested voter information are in violation of well-established federal elections laws.”
The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against Robert Page, the Orange County Registrar of Voters. The suit accuses Page of refusing to provide the DOJ records related to the removal of non-citizens from the county’s voter rolls and failing to maintain an accurate voter list, a violation of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA).
According to the complaint, the DOJ launched its investigation after receiving a report from a family member of a non-citizen who claimed the individual received an unsolicited mail-in ballot despite not being a US citizen. Following the complaint, the DOJ requested records going back to January 2020 showing the number of voter registration records canceled for not meeting the citizenship requirements. Page responded to the request, providing documentation that had information such as driver’s licence numbers, social security numbers, voter identification numbers, and signatures redacted.
The DOJ told Page that the redacted data provided "prohibits the Attorney General from making an accurate assessment of the Defendant’s compliance with [Help America Vote Act] and the [National Voter Registration Act]." A deadline of June 20 was set for Page to respond, or litigation would be filed no later than June 24.
On June 23, Page, through Assistant County Attorney James Steinmann, replied to the DOJ, saying that the unredacted records requested would not be provided.
“Voting by non-citizens is a federal crime, and states and counties that refuse to disclose all requested voter information are in violation of well-established federal elections laws,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division in a statement.
Dhillon further argued that ensuring the removal of non-citizens from voter rolls is crucial for conducting accurate elections.
“Removal of non-citizens from the state’s voter rolls is critical to ensuring that the State’s voter rolls are accurate and that elections in California are conducted without fraudulent voting. The Department of Justice will hold jurisdictions that refuse to comply with federal voting laws accountable,” she added.
The lawsuit follows an executive order signed by President Donald Trump in March aimed at compelling officials to require documentary proof of citizenship for individuals registered to vote for federal elections. The White House said in a fact sheet detailing the order that it “directs the Attorney General to enter into information-sharing agreements with state election officials to identify cases of election fraud or other election law violations.” It also stated that “Non-compliant states may face prioritized Federal enforcement of election integrity laws and loss of funding given their unwillingness to police fraud.”
Libby’s Desk
Commentary and must-reads from Libby’s desk, straight to your inbox.
TPM Newsletter
The Post Millennial’s top stories, delivered to your inbox.
