Trump’s Voter Fraud Commission Forced to Produce Agenda Ahead of Meeting Next Week; Commissioners Using Private Email to Conduct Official Business
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SEPTEMBER 7, 2017
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to litigation brought by the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity on Wednesday released its agenda for next week’s public meeting in Manchester, New Hampshire. The Commission was created by President Trump to support baseless claims of voter fraud, and the lineup of panelists for next week’s meeting reveals a stacked agenda that lacks racial, gender, or ideological diversity. In fact, every one of the ten panelists called to speak is a white male and many are among the nation’s most vocal voter suppression advocates.
“By stacking the deck with an all-white and male cast of panelists, the Commission has created an echo chamber to support Kris Kobach’s baseless claims of voter fraud,” Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said. “The American people deserve to know the full story behind this Commission, not just what Kris Kobach’s allies will present next week in New Hampshire. That is why we requested a full account of the electronic communications among commissioners and staff, including communications shared over private email. We will continue to use the courts as a place to resist this Administration’s shameful and unlawful attempts to promote voter suppression on a national scale.”
The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law has undertaken a series of comprehensive actions to challenge the Commission. This includes filing litigation in the D.C. District Court demanding the Commission operate in a transparent manner pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA); launching a hotline for the public to report instances of voter suppression (866-OUR-VOTE); sending lettersto 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 urging Secretaries of State to adopt a bipartisan resolution condemning the so-called Election Integrity Commission.
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.