COLUMBUS – President Donald Trump’s administration has reversed the government’s position on a voter roll case before the U.S. Supreme Court and is now backing Ohio’s method for purging voters.
A Justice Department filing on Monday said the department determined Ohio’s method does not violate the National Voter Registration Act.
“The decision [of the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals] directly contradicts [the] history of federal enforcement,” said the brief. “And it deprives the states of an important tool in combatting bloated voter rolls.”
Ohio’s elections chief welcomed the support from Washington.
“This case is about maintaining the integrity of our elections, something that will be harder to do if elections officials are not be able to properly maintain the voter rolls,” Secretary of State Jon Husted said.
Civil liberties groups are challenging the state’s program for removing thousands of people from voter rolls based on their failure to vote in recent elections. They say Ohio is unfairly disenfranchising eligible Ohio voters.
The government’s filing said it reconsidered its position following the change in administrations. The Justice Department under President Barack Obama said Ohio’s method was prohibited.
The American Civil Liberties Union called the reversal disappointing.
“Allowing these purges will keep eligible voters away from the ballot. The DOJ’s support for Ohio’s illegal voter purge process is a direct threat to voting rights, and it is crucial that the Supreme Court uphold the Sixth Circuit’s decision and protect the voting rights of all eligible voters,” said ACLU of Ohio legal director Freda Levenson.
Attorneys general from 17 states also filed briefs in support of Ohio’s program for purging voter rolls.
The case, Husted vs Ohio A. Philip Randolph Institute, focuses on the state’s supplemental process, which cancels voter registrations even if the voter in question has not moved and is still eligible to vote. Here’s how it works: If a voter has not cast a ballot in two years, they are mailed a notice asking to confirm their registration. If the voter does not respond, nor cast a ballot within the four years after that, they’re automatically removed from the rolls.
Husted’s office has removed 465,000 deceased voters and 1.3 million duplicate registrations from Ohio’s voter rolls in recent years, according to a report in the Columbus Dispatch.