In May, President Trump signed an executive order to establish the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity, chaired by Vice President Pence and Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach.
Since then the commission has asked states to turn over their voter files — including names, addresses, birthdates, partial Social Security numbers, party affiliation and felon status – to the federal government. Many states have refused this request outright, and it is currently being challenged in court. Despite this, the Commission is pressing forward and will hold its first meeting on July 19th.
Here’s the thing – the commission claims to be investigating voting fraud, but examination after examination of voter fraud claims reveal fraud is very rare and voter impersonation is nearly non-existent. So what is the commission actually trying to achieve?
Whatever their goals, the chilling impact of this commission on voter engagement is already being felt in the states. County election officials in Colorado report thousands of voters have asked to be removed from the voting rolls.
There is much that can and should be done to strengthen and our electoral process, including replacing outdated voting equipment and removing current obstacles to register to vote and cast a ballot, but the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity takes us in the opposite direction. Take action for voter rights! Contact your state governor and urge them to work with their secretaries of state to stand against the Pence-Kobach Commission!
--------------------------
Note: The commission is also collecting public comments at this time. We have chosen not to connect you directly with this electronic address because there have been concerns over the Commission’s publishing of private contact information along with these publicly filed comments. If you would like to file an official comment directly with the commission you can do so by emailing ElectionIntegrityStaff@ovp.eop.gov.