State of Georgia Submits Voter Verification Process to U.S. Department of
Justice for Reconsideration
JMac Politics Blog
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Secretary of State Handel Calls on DOJ to Approve
Georgia’s Critical Voter Roll Protections
8/12/09 Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel today
announced that the State of Georgia has asked the U.S.
Department of Justice (DOJ) to reconsider its May 2009 objection
of preclearance for two critical voter verification processes
utilized in the November 2008 General Election.
As part of the process for seeking preclearance, a state can
ask the DOJ for reconsideration of a submission that has been
denied, or request preclearance before the Federal District
Court of Washington, D.C.
“I do not believe there is anything discriminatory in
verifying voter information and citizenship,” Secretary Handel
said. “I strongly disagreed with the Department of Justice’s
decision to deny preclearance. It is my hope that the Department
of Justice will review this request, with the information and
data provided, and grant preclearance to the State of Georgia
for these verification processes.” “It is absolutely critical that Georgia protects the
integrity of its voter registration rolls by having a mechanism
to verify the identification and eligibility of applicants to
participate in our elections,” Secretary Handel said. “We also
look forward to utilizing these common sense processes that give
the State the ability to verify the identity and citizenship
status of applicants who previously indicated to DDS that they
were not U.S. citizens.” The State’s voter verification process checks five criteria
provided by new voter registration applicants with information
in the Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS) database or
the Social Security Administration database. These criteria
include first name, last name, date of birth, driver’s license
number, or last four digits of the applicant’s Social Security
number. Additionally, if the applicant previously reported to
DDS that he or she is not a U.S. citizen, that person is asked
by their county registrar to provide proof of citizenship.
As required by Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, the State of
Georgia must receive DOJ preclearance prior to making any change
in election law or procedure. In October 2008, a number of activist organizations,
including MALDEF and the ACLU, filed a lawsuit to prevent
Georgia from verifying the eligibility of applicants to register
and vote in the November General Election, including whether
those individuals were citizens of the United States. A U.S. District Court judge and a federal three judge panel
denied motions by MALDEF and ACLU; directed the State to
continue the verification process; and acknowledged the State’s
requirements to verify information under the Help America Vote
Act. The full voter verification process, which included
citizenship, was in place prior to the 2008 General Election,
and no eligible voter was denied their right to cast a
ballot. The 2008 General Election was the largest in Georgia’s
history, and featured record turnout among even minority voters
with the citizenship verification program in place. Turnout
among Hispanic and African-American voters increased 140 percent
and 42 percent, respectively, over the 2004 General Election. Karen Handel was sworn in as Secretary of State in January
2007. The Secretary of State's office offers important services
to our citizens and our business community. Among the office’s
wide-ranging responsibilities, the Secretary of State is charged
with conducting efficient and secure elections, the registration
of corporations, and the regulation of securities and
professional license holders. The office also oversees the
Georgia Archives and the Capitol Museum. |
