States can't require proof of citizenship for federal elections, DC Circuit rules
State laws that require voters to show proof of citizenship for federal elections were blocked Friday by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
Georgia, Alabama and Kansas had the laws, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution. The lawsuit was filed after Brian Newby, executive director of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, decided to let the states request citizenship documentation for residents who used federal forms for mail-in voter registration.
His decision followed a 2013 U.S. Supreme Court opinion that nixed a similar Arizona law that required proof of U.S. citizenship for federal voter registration applicants. Brian Kemp, the Georgia secretary of state, then asked the Election Assistance Commission to add new instructions on federal voter registration forms so that the state could require proof of U.S. citizenship.
Newbry saw his action as a routine administrative responsibility, according to the article, but the panel in a 2-1 ruling (PDF) found that he overstepped his authority. The preliminary injunction motion was brought by organizations including the Georgia NAACP, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and the American Civil Liberties Union.
Other states that use the same federal forms require that applicants swear they are U.S. citizens, but they don’t require documentation as proof, according to the article. Also, the opinion does not prohibit states from asking for proof of citizenship in state and local elections.
