Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Responds to Latest White House Statement Regarding Election Integrity Commission
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JULY 5, 2017
Leading Civil Rights Organization Also Reiterates Its Call To Statewide Election Officials To Boycott Partisan Election Commission
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, released the following statement Wednesday regarding the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity, a bipartisan commission established by President Trump and co-led by Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach that threatens the rights of minority voters. On Wednesday, Mr. Kobach sought again to solicit the personal information of more than 200 million voters across the country.
“One day after Americans celebrated our freedom and independence, Kris Kobach is once again attempting to intimidate state election officials into releasing vast amounts of data and personal information on virtually every voter across the country. Mr. Kobach is a notorious vote suppressor, and the fact that he is the only person speaking for the so-called Commission on Election Integrity, which was billed as a bipartisan effort, is concerning. We continue to urge state election officials to not provide any support or release any voter data to Mr. Kobach’s meritless inquisition. State support of any kind legitimizes this Commission’s unprecedented and dangerous agenda.”
The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law has undertaken a series of comprehensive actions to challenge the Pence-Kobach Commission. This includes: the launch of a hotline for the public to report instances of voter suppression (866-OUR-VOTE); letters sent to Secretaries of State demanding they not comply with Mr. Kobach’s request for voter roll data; filing a Hatch Act complaint against Mr. Kobach regarding his repeated exploitation of his Commission role to solicit campaign contributions and promote his candidacy for Governor of Kansas, and; requesting documents regarding the Commission made pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), a key government transparency law.
About the Lawyers’ Committee
The Lawyers’ Committee, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, was formed in 1963 at the request of President John F. Kennedy to involve the private bar in providing legal services to address racial discrimination. Now in its 54th year, the Lawyers’ Committee is continuing its quest “Move America Toward Justice.” The principal mission of the Lawyers’ Committee is to secure, through the rule of law, equal justice for all, particularly in the areas of criminal justice, fair housing and community development, economic justice, educational opportunities, and voting rights.