FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 11, 2017
CONTACT: Micah Kubic, executive director, ACLU of Kansas, 913-490-4101, [email protected]
OVERLAND PARK, KS - President Trump is expected to sign an executive order later today establishing a “Presidential Commission on Election Integrity.” The commission vice chair will reportedly be Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, whom the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas has successfully sued numerous times over his voter suppression policies.
Micah Kubic, executive director of the ACLU of Kansas, said:
"It is a real shame that this commission will spend its time looking into fictional voter fraud, which countless investigations have now shown to be imaginary. Indeed, President Trump's own lawyers have said that, ‘All available evidence suggests that the 2016 general election was not tainted by fraud or mistake.’ This commission cannot somehow magically make false statements about voter fraud become true. Most troubling of all, the commission will be co-led by the nation's leading advocate of voter suppression and restriction - Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach. The fact that this commission will be co-led by Sec. Kobach, whom the ACLU of Kansas has repeatedly and successfully taken to court, demonstrates that it is a sham. Sec. Kobach has dedicated his career in statewide elected office to making it as hard as possible for citizens to vote and participate in American democracy, and there is no reason to believe that he will use his new platform any differently. At a time when American voter turnout rates are among the lowest in the developed world, we should be focused on doing everything possible to increase voter participation and citizen engagement. That is a conversation that Sec. Kobach has never shown any interest in leading, but it is one that advocates for voting rights and citizen involvement will continue to have."
Dale Ho, director of the national ACLU's Voting Rights Project, said, "We call on professional elections administrators, serious academics, and elected officials to refuse to participate in what will be a pretext for disenfranchising Americans."
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About the ACLU of Kansas: The ACLU of Kansas is the statewide affiliate of the national American Civil Liberties Union. The ACLU of Kansas is dedicated to preserving and advancing the civil rights and legal freedoms guaranteed by the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights. For more information, visit our website at www.aclukansas.org.