HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 10-21-2008 - 3aORANGE COUNTY
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT
Meeting Date: October 21, 2008
Action Agenda
Item No. 3 - ~
SUBJECT: Status Report from Board of Elections
DEPARTMENT: Board of Elections PUBLIC HEARING: (Y/N) No
County Manager
ATTACHMENT(S):
10/8/08 Press Release from State Board
of Elections
10/9/08 Article from The New York
Times
INFORMATION CONTACT:
Tracy Reams, 245-2350
Laura Blackmon, 245-2300
PURPOSE: To receive a status report from the Board of Elections Director Tracy Reams on
the current election and related issues.
BACKGROUND: Board of Elections Director Tracy Reams will provide the Board with a status
report on the current election and related issues.
FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no financial impact associated with receiving a status report on
the current election and related issues.
RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends that the Board receive the status report
on the current election and related issues.
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STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS
6400 Mail Service Center ~ Raleigh, North Cazolina 27699-6400
GARY O. BARTLETT
Executive Director Mailing Address:
P.O. BOX 27255
RALEIGH, NC 27611-7255
(919) 733-7173
FAX (919) 715-0135
PRESS RELEASE -October 8, 2008
CONTACT: Gary O. Bartlett, Executive Director, 919-715-1827
In today's New York Times, reprinted in The News and Observer, a story appeared about voter
registration that lumped North Carolina in with other states that were allegedly following
incorrect procedures that might prejudice voters in the November elections. Although no
specific irregularities were mentioned with respect to North Carolina, the articles contend that
voters here may be disenfranchised. This is simply untrue.
No reporter for either publication contacted any one in this office to verify North Carolina's
procedures. Nor did the Commissioner of the Social Secut7tyAdministration contact us before 'he
released his allegations that North Carolina may be preventing voters from registering; instead he
sent a letter to the Secretary of State, who does not administer elections in North Carolina, and
we had to obtain a copy from a national organization.
The problem with these stories is they undermine the public's confidence in North Carolina's
elections. Our processes have been reviewed by both major presidential campaigns, reviewed
and precleared by the U.S. Department of Justice, and by independent advocacy organizations
such as Democracy North Carolina. These are the processes we use to assure every qualified
voter is permitted to register and vote in this State:
The Social Security number Match is only one of the tools we use to verify a voter's identity.
Applicants to register to vote are asked to provide their driver's license number, and if they do
not have one, then the last four digits of their Social Security number. Pursuant to an agreement
between the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles and the Social Security Administration,
an applicant's information is automatically processed to verify the numbers provided by the
voter. The State of North Carolina reimburses the Social Security Administration for each
verification transaction. The vast majority of voters are verified by their driver's license number.
This office is well aware that the Social Security database was never intended to be used for this
type of identification process -but it was mandated by Help America Vote Act and implemented
in North Carolina. It is a tool for those voters who do not have North Carolina driver's license
numbers.
However, if a voter registers and their information is incomplete or the number or numbers they
provide do not match, there are several safeguards in place to assure that no qualified voter is
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disenfranchised. The person's name is put into our computer database, but flagged that
identification or other information is needed. If time permits, counties contact the applicant to
obtain the missing information before the election. If the applicant appears to vote in an election
before their identification has been verified, they may produce any of a variety of types of
identification and vote. Alternatively, they can vote a provisional ballot and it will be counted if
the missing information is provided by the day before the canvass of the election.
These news articles also imply that North Carolina's list maintenance procedures have
impermissibly removed voters. North Carolina strictly follows the requirements of state and
federal law in conducting list maintenance to remove from the voter rolls at regular intervals
those persons who have died, been convicted of a felony and have not had their citizenship rights
restored, or who have moved out of the voting jurisdiction, i.e., the county in North Carolina. To
assure that a voter is not removed through administrative errors, all names are kept in the voter
registration database. A voter whose name has been removed may be allowed to vote a regular
ballot if he or she has simply failed to report a move within a county, or to provide other missing
information that will be researched by the county and to vote a provisional ballot that will be
counted if their qualifications are verified.
North Carolina will add approximately 850,000 new voters to its rolls by November 1, a record
growth in voter registration. It is not surprising that the Social Security Administration has
processed nearly 400,000 requests for verification since October 1, 2007.
The Social Security Administration plans to take down its computer system during the Columbus
Day federal holiday to do routine maintenance. This office protested taking down the system for
two days when our deadline for voter registration by mail is October 10. In anticipation of this
shutdown, Sherre Toler, the Director of Elections in Harnett County, sorted voter registration
applications awaiting processing into several groups. In light of today's articles, you might fmd
these numbers interesting -
1001 registrations awaiting processing
307 contain last four digits of their SSN
439 contain driver's license number only
228 contain both SSN and driver's license number
27 contain no identifying number
Harnett County, like many in North Carolina, has large numbers of college students, military
families and older citizens. These are precisely the groups that may not have a North Carolina
driver's license but do have a Social Security Number. Thus, they have a high number of
applicants who provide only that information. (We recognize that some applicants will choose to
provide only their Social Security Number when they do have a valid driver's license; this does
not render their application invalid.)
Today's articles have undermined the public's trust in North Carolina's election administration.
We want to provide any and all information that will restore that confidence. Attached please
find the most pertinent North Carolina statutes to this issue- General Statutes 163-82.4, 82.14,
and 166.12 and a summary of our list maintenance processes.
LOCATION: 506 NORTH HARRINGTON STREET • RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA, 27603
§ 163-82.4. Contents of application form.
(a) Information Requested of Applicant. -The form required by G.S. 163-82.3(a)
shall request the applicant's:
(1) Name,
(2) Date of birth,
(3) Residence address,
(4) County of residence,
(5) Date of application,
(6) Gender,
(7) Race,
(7a) Ethnicity,
(8) Political party affiliation, if any, in accordance with subsection (c) of
this section,
(9) Telephone number (to assist the county board of elections in contacting
the voter if needed in processing the application),
(10) Drivers license number or, if the applicant does not have a drivers
license number, the last four digits of the applicant's social security
number,
and any other information the State Board finds is necessary to enable officials of the
county where the person resides to satisfactorily process the application. The form shall
require the applicant to state whether currently registered to vote anywhere, and at what
address, so that any prior registration can be cancelled. The portions of the form
concerning race and ethnicity shall include as a choice any category shown by the most
recent decennial federal census to compose at least one percent (1%) of the total
population of North Carolina. The county board shall make a diligent effort to complete
for the registration records any information requested on the form that the applicant does
not complete, but no application shall be denied because an applicant does not state race,
ethnicity, gender, or telephone number. The application shall conspicuously state that
provision of the applicant's telephone number is optional. If the county board maintains
voter records on computer, the free list provided under this subsection shall include
telephone numbers if the county board enters the telephone number into its computer
records of voters.
(al) No Drivers License or Social Security Number Issued. -The State Board shall
assign a unique identifier number to an applicant for voter registration if the applicant has
not been issued either a current and valid drivers license or a social security number. That
unique identifier number shall serve to identify that applicant for. voter registration
purposes.
(b) Notice of Requirements, Attestation, Notice of Penalty, and Notice of
Confidentiality. -The form required by G.5. 163-82.3(x) shall contain, in uniform type,
the following:
(1) A statement that specifies each eligibility requirement (including
citizenship) and an attestation that the applicant meets each such
LOCATION: 506 NORTH HARRINGTON STREET • RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA, 27603
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requirement, with a requirement for the signature of the applicant, under
penalty of a Class I felony under G.S. 163-275(13).
(2) A statement that, if the applicant declines to register to vote, the fact
that the applicant has declined to register will remain confidential and
will be used only for voter registration purposes.
(3) A statement that, if the applicant does register to vote, the office at
which the applicant submits a voter registration application will remain
confidential and will be used only for voter registration purposes.
(c) Party Affiliation or Unaffiliated Status. -The application form described in
G.S. 163-82.3(a) shall provide a place for the applicant to state a preference to be
affiliated with one of the political parties in G.S. 163-96, or a preference to be an
"unaffiliated" voter. Every person who applies to register shall state his preference. If the
applicant fails to declare a preference for a party or for unaffiliated status, that person
shall be listed as "unaffiliated", except that if the person is already registered to vote in
the county and that person's registration already contains a party affiliation, the county
board shall not change the registrant's status to "unaffiliated" unless the registrant clearly
indicates a desire in accordance with G.S. 163-82.17 for such a change. An unaffiliated
registrant shall not be eligible to vote in any political party primary, except as provided in
G.S. 163-119, but may vote in any other primary or general election. The application
form shall so state.
(d) Citizenship and Age Questions. -Voter registration application forms shall
include all of the following:
(1) The question "Are you a citizen of the United States of America?" and
boxes for the applicant to check to indicate whether the applicant is or is
not a citizen of the United States.
(2) The question "Will you be 18 years of age on or before election day?"
and boxes for the applicant to check to indicate whether the applicant
will be 18 years of age or older on election day.
(3) The statement "If you checked 'no' in response to either of these
questions, do not complete this form."
(e) Correcting Registration Forms. - If the voter fails to complete any required
item on the voter registration form but provides enough information on the form to enable
the county board of elections to identify and contact the voter, the voter shall be notified
of the omission and given the opportunity to complete the form at least by 5:00 P.M. on
the day before the county canvass as set in G.S. 163-182.5(b). If the voter corrects that
omission within that time and is determined by the county board of elections to be
eligible to vote, the board shall permit the voter to vote. If the information is not
corrected by election day, the voter shall be allowed to vote a provisional official ballot.
If the correct information is provided to the county board of elections by at least 5:00
P.M. on the day before the county canvass, the board shall count any portion of the
provisional official ballot that the voter is eligible to vote. (1901, c. 89, s. 12; Rev., s.
4319; C.S., s. 5940; Ex. Sess. 1920, c. 93; 1933, c. 165, s. 5; 1951, c. 984, s. 1; 1953, c.
843; 1955, c. 800; c. 871, s. 2; 1957, c. 784, s. 2; 1963, c. 303, s. 1; 1967, c. 775, s. 1;
LOCATION: 506 NORTH HARRINGTON STREET • RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA, 27603
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1971, c. 1166, s. 6; 1973, c. 793, s. 27; c. 1223, s. 3; 1975, c. 234, s. 2; 1979, c. 135, s. 1;
c. 539, ss. 1-3; c. 797, ss. 1, 2; 1981, c. 222; c. 308, s. 2; 1991 (Reg. Sess., 1992), c. 1044,
s. 18(a); 1993, c. 74, s. 1; 1993 (Reg. Sess., 1994), c. 762, s. 2; 1999-424, s. 7(c), (d);
1999-453, s. 8(a); 2003-226, s. 9; 2004-127, s. 4; 2005-428, s. 15; 2007-391, s. 20.)
§ 163-82.14. List maintenance.
(a) Uniform Program. -The State Board of Elections shall adopt a uniform
program that makes a reasonable effort:
(1) To remove the names of ineligible voters from the official lists of
eligible voters, and
(2) To update the addresses and other necessary data of persons who
remain on the official lists of eligible voters.
That program shall be nondiscriminatory and shall comply with the provisions of the
Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended, and with the provisions of the National Voter
Registration Act. The State Board of Elections, in addition to the methods set forth in this
section, may use other methods toward the ends set forth in subdivisions (1) and (2) of
this subsection, including address-updating services provided by the Postal Service. Each
county board of elections shall conduct systematic efforts to remove names from its list
of registered voters in accordance with this section and with the program adopted by the
State Board. The county boards of elections shall complete their list maintenance mailing
program by April 15 of every odd-numbered year, unless the State Board of Elections
approves a different date for the county.
(b) Death. -The Department of Health and Human Services shall furnish free of
charge to the State Board of Elections every month, in a format prescribed by the State
Board of Elections, the names of deceased persons who were residents of the State. The
State Board of Elections shall distribute every month to each county board of elections
the names on that list of deceased persons who were residents of that county. The
Department of Health and Human Services shall base each list upon information supplied
by death certifications it received during the preceding month. Upon the receipt of those
names, each county board of elections shall remove from its voter registration records
any person the list shows to be dead. The county board need not send any notice to the
address of the person so removed.
(c) Conviction of a Felony. -
(1) Report of Conviction Within the State. -The State Board of Elections,
on or before the fifteenth day of every month, shall report to the county
board of elections of that county the name, county of residence, and
residence address if available, of each individual against whom a final
judgment of conviction of a felony has been entered in that county in the
preceding calendar month.
(2) Report of Federal Conviction. -The Executive Director of the State
Board of Elections, upon receipt of a notice of conviction sent by a
United States Attorney pursuant to section 8(g) of the National Voter
Registration Act, shall notify the appropriate county boards of elections
of the conviction.
LOCATION: 506 NORTH HARRINGTON STREET • RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA, 27603
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(3) County Board's Duty Upon Receiving Report of Conviction. -When a
county board of elections receives a notice pursuant to subdivision (1)
or (2) of this subsection relating to a resident of that county and that
person is registered to vote in that county, the board shall, after giving
30 days' written notice to the voter at his registration address, and if the
voter makes no objection, remove the person's name from its
registration records. If the voter notifies the county board of elections of
his objection to the removal within 30 days of the notice, the chairman
of the board of elections shall enter a challenge under G.S. 163-85(c)(5),
and the notice the county board received pursuant to this subsection
shall be prima facie evidence for the preliminary hearing that the
registrant was convicted of a felony.
(d) Change of Address. - A county board of elections shall conduct a systematic
program to remove from its list of registered voters those who have moved out of the
county, and to update the registration records. of persons who have moved within the
county. The county board shall remove a person from its list if the registrant:
(1) Gives confirmation in writing of a change of address for voting
purposes out of the county. "Confirmation in writing" for purposes of
this subdivision shall include:
a. A report to the county board from the Department of
Transportation or from a voter registration agency listed in G.S.
163-82.20 that the voter has reported a change of address for
voting purposes outside the county;
b. A notice of cancellation received under G.S. 163-82.9; or
c. A notice of cancellation received from an election jurisdiction
outside the State.
(2) Fails to respond to a confirmation mailing sent by the county board in
accordance with this subdivision and does not vote or appear to vote in
an election beginning on the date of the notice and ending on the day
after the date of the second general election for the United States House
of Representatives that occurs after the date of the notice. A county
board sends a confirmation notice in accordance with this subdivision if
the notice:
a. Is a postage prepaid and preaddressed return card, sent by
forwardable mail, on which the registrant may state current
address;
b. Contains or is accompanied by a notice to the effect that if the
registrant did not change residence but remained in the county,
the registrant should return the card not later than the deadline for
registration by mail in G.S. 163-82.6(c)(1); and
c. Contains or is accompanied by information as to how the
registrant may continue to be eligible to vote if the registrant has
moved outside the county.
LOCATION: 506 NORTH HARRINGTON STREET • RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA, 27603
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A county board shall send a confirmation mailing in accordance with
this subdivision to every registrant after every congressional election if
the county board has not confirmed the registrant's address by another
means.
(3) Any registrant who is removed from the list of registered voters
pursuant to this subsection shall be reinstated if the voter appears to vote
and gives oral or written affirmation that the voter has not moved out of
the county but has maintained residence continuously within the county.
That person shall be allowed to vote as provided in G.S. 163-82.15(f).
(1953, c. 843; 1955, c. 800; 1963, c. 303, s. 1; 1965, c. 1116, s. l; 1967,
c. 775, s. 1; 1973, c. 793, ss. 25, 28; c. 1223, s. 4; 1975, c. 395; 1977, c.
265, s. 3; 1981, c. 39, s. 1; c. 87, s. 1; c. 308, s. 1; 1983, c. 411, ss. 1, 2;
1985, c. 211, ss. 1, 2; 1987, c. 691, s. 1; 1993 (Reg. Sess., 1994), c. 762,
s. 2; 1997-443, s. 11A.117; 1999-453, s. 7(a), (b); 2001-319, ss. 8(a),
11; 2005-428, s. 14; 2007-391, ss. 18, 32.)
§ 163-166.12. Requirements for certain voters who register by mail.
(a) Voting in Person. - An individual who has registered to vote by mail on or
after January 1, 2003, and has not previously voted in an election that includes a ballot
item for federal office in North Carolina, shall present to a local election official at a
voting place before voting there one of the following:
(1) A current and valid photo identification.
(2) A copy of one of the following documents that shows the name and
address of the voter: a current utility bill, bank statement, government
check, paycheck, or other government document.
(b) Voting Mail-In Absentee. - An individual who has registered to vote by mail
on or after January 1, 2003, and has not previously voted in an election that includes a
ballot item for federal office in North Carolina, in order to cast amail-in absentee vote,
shall submit with the mailed-in absentee ballot one of the following:
(1) A copy of a current and valid photo identification.
(2) A copy of one of the following documents that shows the name and
address of the voter: a current utility bill, bank statement, government
check, paycheck, or other government document.
(bl) The county board of elections shall note the type of identification proof
submitted by the voter under the provisions of subsection (a) or (b) of this section and
may dispose of the tendered copy of identification proof as soon as the type of proof is
noted in the voter registration records.
(b2) Voting When Identification Numbers Do Not Match. -Regardless of whether
an individual has registered by mail or by another method, if the individual has provided
with the registration form a drivers license number or last four digits of a Social Security
number but the computer validation of the number as required by G.S. 163-82.12 did not
result in a match, and the number has not been otherwise validated by the board of
elections, in the first election in which the individual votes that individual shall submit
with the ballot the form of identification described in subsection (a) or subsection (b) of
LOCATION: 506 NORTH HARRINGTON STREET • RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA, 27603
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this section, depending upon whether the ballot is voted in person or absentee. If that
identification is provided and the board of elections does not determine that the
individual is otherwise ineligible to vote a ballot, the failure of identification numbers to
match shall not prevent that individual from registering to vote and having that
individual's vote counted. If the individual registers and votes under G.S. 163-82.6A, the
identification documents required in that section, rather than those described in
subsection (a) or (b) of this section, apply.
(c) The Right to Vote Provisionally. - If an individual is required under subsection
(a), (b), or (b2) of this section to present identification in order to vote, but that individual
does not present the required identification, that individual may vote a provisional official
ballot. If the voter is at the voting place, the voter may vote provisionally there without
unnecessary delay. If the voter is voting by mail-in absentee ballot, the mailed ballot
without the required identification shall be treated as a provisional official ballot.
(d) Exemptions. -This section does not apply to any of the following:
(1) An individual who registers by mail and submits as part of the
registration application either of the following:
a. A copy of a current and valid photo identification.
b. A copy of one of the following documents that shows the name
and address of the voter: a current utility bill, bank statement,
government check, paycheck, or other government document.
(2) An individual who registers by mail and submits as part of the
registration application the individual's drivers license number or at
least the last four digits of the individual's social security number where
an election official matches either or both of the numbers submitted
with an existing State identification record bearing the same number,
name, and date of birth contained in the submitted registration. If any
individual's number does not match, the individual shall provide
identification as required in subsection (b2) of this section in the first
election in which the individual votes.
(3) An individual who is entitled to vote by absentee ballot under the
Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act.
(4) An individual who is entitled to vote otherwise than in person under
section 3(b)(2)(B)(ii) of the Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and
Handicapped Act.
(5) An individual who is entitled to vote otherwise than in person under
any other federal law. (2003-226, s. 16; 2004-127, s. 3; 2007-391, s.
21(a).)
LOCATION: 506 NORTH HARRINGTON STREET • RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA, 27603
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SBE List Maintenance Summary
Definitions:
SBE -State Board of Elections
CBE -County Board of Elections
DOC -Department of Corrections
DHHS -Department of Health and Human Services
Felons:
SBE receives a list of convicted felons once a month from DOC. The list is
then processed by the state and made available to the CBE, via email and
web, for processing. The list is a potential match list of DOC records
against the statewide voter list that the counties must research and verify.
The memo can be found:
ftp://www.anp.sboe.state.nc. us/seims/numbermemo/
2008-0004 - DOC FELON REPORTS.doc
Deaths:
SBE receives a list of people who have died once a month from DHHS.
The list is then processed by the state and made available to the County
Board of Elections, via email and web, for processing. There are 2 lists
that are provided to the counties. The first list from DHHS is of people who
have died in their county. The second list is a potential match list of DHHS
records against the statewide voter list that the counties must research and
verify. The memo can be found:
ftp://www.a~o.sboe.state. nc. us/seims/numbermemo/
2008-0005 -DHHS DECEASED REPORTS.doc
SBE also runs a death check with DMV where SBE sends a list of active
and inactive driver licenses from the voter registration database. DMV then
matches that list against their SSN death database. SBE then receives the
list then removes the identified registered voters.
Duplicates:
The following are the Duplicate procedures handled by elections:
LOCATION: 506 NORTH HARRINGTON STREET • RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA, 27603
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1. HAVA moves. When a voter is registered at the CBE, that voter is checked at the state for a
duplicate. If a duplicate is found, the state removes the existing voter and allows the county to
complete the registration for the new voter.
2. Monthly duplicate check. The SBE runs a county report monthly comparing the county voter
records with the state voter records attempting to find duplicate matches. A report is generated
and made available to the counties via email and the web for processing. The memo can be
found: ftp://www.ago.sboe.state.nc.us/seims/numbermemo/
2008-0006 -DUPLICATE REGISTRATIONS REPORT.doc
Merge Voters. The CBE is able, through the voter registration software, to merge voters if they
find a duplicate. This can be during the voter registration process or at any point afterwards.
SEIMS Scheduled Tasks:
Weekly Tasks:
1. Print voter cards, verifications, and address confirmations.
2. Run Verification update reports.
Monthly Tasks:
1. Print cancellation notices
2. Print felon letters
3. Run the wait period expiration task.
Annual Tasks:
1. Remove all temporary registrants.
List Maintenance:
Maintaining a list of eligible voters requires identifying voters that should be
inactive, and removing those that have been inactive through two federal
general elections.
The List Maintenance process starts at the beginning of each year
following a federal election after all voter histories for that election have
been updated. The steps include:
1. Create a no-contact list
2. Change inactive voter status to removed status
3. Remove duplicate voters
NVRA:
SBE runs a NVRA report that collects data from the counties monthly.
LOCATION: 506 NORTH HARRIlVGTON STREET • RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA, 27603
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States' Actions to Block Voters Appear Illegal - NYTimes.com
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Page 1 of 4
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October 9, 2008
States' Actions to Block Voters Appear Illegal
By IAN URBINA
Tens of thousands of eligible voters in at least six swing states have been removed from the rolls or have been
blocked from registering in ways that appear to violate federal law, according to a review of state records and
Social Security data by The New York Times.
The actions do not seem to be coordinated by one party or the other, nor do they appear to be the result of
election officials intentionally breaking rules, but are apparently the result of mistakes in the handling of the
registrations and voter files as the states tried to comply with a 2002 federal law, intended to overhaul the
way elections are run.
Still, because Democrats have been more aggressive at registering new voters this year, according to state
election officials, any heightened screening of new applications may affect their party's supporters
disproportionately. The screening or trimming of voter registration lists in the six states -Colorado, Indiana,
Ohio, Michigan, Nevada and North Carolina -could also result in problems at the polls on Election Day:
people who have been removed from the rolls are likely to show up only to be challenged by political party
officials or election workers, resulting in confusion, long lines and heated tempers.
Some states allow such voters to cast provisional ballots. But they are often not counted because they require
added verification.
Although much attention this year has been focused on the millions of new voters being added to the rolls by
the candidacy of Senator Barack Obama, there has been far less notice given to the number of voters being
dropped from those same rolls.
States have been trying to follow the Help America Vote Act of 2002 and remove the names of voters who
should no longer be listed; but for every voter added to the rolls in the past two months in some states,
election officials have removed two, a review of the records shows.
The six swing states seem to be in violation of federal law in two ways. Michigan and Colorado are removing
voters from the rolls within 9o days of a federal election, which is not allowed except when voters die, notify
the authorities that they have moved out of state, or have been declared unfit to vote.
Indiana, Nevada, North Carolina and Ohio seem to be improperly using Social Security data to verify
registration applications for new voters.
In addition to the six swing states, three more states appear to be violating federal law. Alabama and Georgia
seem to be improperly using Social Security information to screen registration applications from new voters.
And Louisiana appears to have removed thousands of voters after the federal deadline for taking such action.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/09/us/politics/09voting.html?_r=1 &sq=purge&st=cse&... 10/16/2008
States' Actions to Block Voters Appear Illegal - NYTimes.com
Page 2 of 4
is
Under federal law, election officials are supposed to use the Social Security database to check a registration
application only as a last resort, if no record of the applicant is found on state databases, like those for
driver's licenses or identification cards.
The requirement exists because using the federal database is less reliable than the state lists, and is more
likely to incorrectly flag applications as invalid. Many state officials seem to be using the Social Security lists
first.
In the year ending Sept. 30, election officials in Nevada, for example, used the Social Security database more
than 740,000 times to check voter files or registration applications and found more than ~i5,ooo
nonmatches, federal records show. Election officials in Georgia ran more than i.9 million checks on voter
files or voter registration applications and found more than 260,000 nonmatches.
Officials of the Social Security Administration, presented with those numbers, said they were far too high to
be cases where names were not in state databases. They said the data seem to represent a violation of federal
law and the contract the states signed with the agency to use the database.
Last week, after the inquiry by The Times, Michael J. Astrue, the commissioner of the Social Security
Administration, alerted the Justice Department to the problem and sent letters to election officials in
Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Nevada, North Carolina and Ohio. The letters ask the officials to ensure that they
are complying with federal law.
"It is absolutely essential that people entitled to register to vote are allowed to do so," Mr. Astrue said in a
press release.
In three states -Colorado, Louisiana and Michigan -the number of people purged from the election rolls
since Aug. i far exceeds the number who may have died or relocated during that period.
States maybe improperly removing voters who have moved within the state, election experts said, or who are
considered inactive because they have failed to vote in two consecutive federal elections. For example, major
voter registration drives have been held this year in Colorado, which has also had a significant population
increase since the last presidential election, but the state has recorded a net loss of nearly ioo,ooo voters
from its rolls since 2004.
Asked about the appearance of voter law violations, Rosemary E. Rodriguez, the chairwoman of the federal
Election Assistance Commission, which oversees elections, said they could present "extremely serious
problems."
"The law is pretty clear about how states can use Social Security information to screen registrations and when
states can purge their rolls," Ms. Rodriguez said.
Nevada officials said the large number of Social Security checks had resulted from county clerks entering
Social Security numbers and driver's license numbers in the wrong fields before records were sent to the
state. They could not estimate how many records might have been affected by the problem, but they said it
was corrected several weeks ago.
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Other states described similar problems in entering data. 13
Under the Help America Vote Act, all states were required to build statewide electronic voter registration lists
to standardize and centralize voter records that had been kept on the local level. To prevent ineligible voters
from casting a ballot, states were also required to clear the electronic lists of duplicates, people who had died
or moved out of state, or who had become ineligible for other reasons.
Voting rights groups and federal election officials have raised concerns that the methods used to add or
remove names vary by state and are conducted with little oversight or transparency. Many states are purging
their lists for the first time and appear to be unfamiliar with the 2002 federal law.
"Just as voting machines were the major issue that came out of the 200o presidential election and
provisional ballots were the big issue from 2004, voter registration and these statewide lists will be the top
concern this year," said Daniel P. Tokaii, a law professor at Ohio State University.
Voting rights groups have urged voters to check their registrations with local officials.
In Michigan, some 33,000 voters were removed from the rolls in August, a figure that is far higher than the
number of deaths in the state during the same period -about ~,ioo - or the number of people who moved
out of the state -about 4,400, according to data from the Postal Service.
In Colorado, some 37,000 people were removed from the rolls in the three weeks after July 21. During that
time, about 5,ioo people moved out of the state and about 2,400 died, according to postal data and death
records.
In Louisiana, at least i8,ooo people were dropped from the rolls in the five weeks after July 23.Overthe
same period, at least i,6oo people moved out of state and at least 3,800 died.
The secretaries of state in Michigan and Colorado did not respond to requests for comment. A spokesman for
the Louisiana secretary of state said that about half of the numbers of the voters removed from the rolls were
people who moved within the state or who died. The remaining ii,ooo or so people seem to have been
removed by local officials for other reasons that were not clear, the spokesman said.
The purge estimates were calculated using data from state election officials, who produce a snapshot every
month or so of the voter rolls with details about each registered voter on record, making it possible to
determine how many have been removed.
The Times's methodology for calculating the purge estimates was reviewed by two voting experts, Kimball
Brace, the director of Election Data Services, a Washington consulting firm that tracks voting trends, and R.
Michael Alvarez, a political science professor at the California Institute of Technolo~v.
By using the Social Security database so extensively, states are flagging extra registrations and creating extra
work for local officials who are already struggling to process all the registration applications by Election Day.
"I simply don't have the staff to keep up," said Ann McFall, the supervisor of elections in Volusia County, Fla.
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Page 4 of 4
64`
It takes io minutes to process a normal registration and up to a week to deal with a flagged one, said Ms.
McFall, a Republican, adding that she was receiving ioo or so flagged registrations a week.
Usually, when state election officials check a registration and find that it does not match a database entry,
they alert local election officials to contact the voter and request further proof of identification. If that is not
possible, most states flag the voter file and require identification from the voter at the polling place.
In Florida, Iowa, Louisiana and South Dakota, the problem is more serious because voters are not added to
the rolls until the states remove the flags.
Ms. McFall said she was angry to learn from the state recently that it was her responsibility to contact each
flagged voter to clear up the discrepancies before Election Day. "This situation with voter registrations is
going to land us in court," she said.
In fact, it already has.
In Michigan and Florida, rights groups are suing state officials, accusing them of being too aggressive in
purging voter rolls and of preventing people from registering.
In Georgia, the Justice Department is considering legal action against the state because officials in Cobb and
Cherokee Counties sent letters to hundreds of voters stating that their voter registrations had been flagged
and telling them they cannot vote until they clear up the discrepancy.
On Monday, the Ohio Republican Party filed a motion in federal court against the secretary of state to get the
list of all names that have been flagged by the Social Security database since Jan. i. The motion seeks to
require that any voter who does not clear up a discrepancy be required to vote using a provisional ballot.
Republicans said in the motion that it is central to American democracy that nonqualified voters be
forbidden from voting.
The Ohio secretary of state, Jennifer Brunner, a Democrat, said in court papers that she believes the
Republicans are seeking grounds to challenge voters and get them removed from the rolls.
Considering that in the past year the state received nearly 290,000 nonmatches, such a plan could have
significant impact at the polls.
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