Arkansas voting access group sues state over recent ‘wet signature’ rule

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – A federal lawsuit filed in Arkansas states voters are being unfairly restricted by recent changes to the voter registration rules by the state election commission.

The group Get Loud Arkansas filed suit against the state in the Westen District of Arkansas on Wednesday. The suit claims that the April emergency rule from the state Board of Election Commissioners to not allow electronic signatures on voter registrations violates the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

Get Loud states that it had developed a method for people to register to vote online through its website using electronic signatures. The suit states that the secretary of state’s office cleared that electronic signatures were acceptable for voter registration when Get Loud launched its website.

After news reports that Get Loud’s online voter registration led to many more voters being registered, especially young and minority voters, the suit states, “the Secretary abruptly reversed himself and recommended for the first time that counties reject electronic signatures on voter registration applications.”

The suit states that the secretary’s reversal “bears a striking resemblance to the suppressive tactics that spurred Congress to enact the materiality provision in its landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964.”

Court records show a trial date has not been set.

The suit lists Get Loud and two plaintiffs, both of whom had their registrations rejected after registering to vote online using electronic signatures. Defendants listed are Secretary of State John Thurston, members of the board of election commissioners, and county clerks from Benton, Washington, and Pulaski counties.

A 2023 study by the non-partisan National Conference of Citizenship showed Arkansas had the lowest level of participation nationally in the 2020 election. The state had a 54% participation rate, compared to the national 65% rate.

from KARK https://ift.tt/KM5t2pZ