Anti-Voter Executive Order Challenged in Court by Pro-Voter Coalition
Washington, DC — Today, Campaign Legal Center (CLC) and State Democracy Defenders Fund (SDDF) sued the Executive Office of the President and members of the president’s Cabinet on behalf of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), Secure Families Initiative (SFI) and Arizona Students’ Association (ASA) — alleging a recent executive order far exceeds his powers and threatens the freedom to vote for millions of Americans.
Voting is a freedom guaranteed and protected by the Constitution. The president does not have the legal authority to adopt new registration or vote counting requirements via an executive order that restricts access to that freedom for U.S. citizens. These changes are anti-voter at their core and signal that the president and his administration are intent on changing the way we run elections by unlawfully disenfranchising U.S. citizens. Through this executive order, the president is attempting to act beyond his power and usurp the role of Congress and the states to set their own election laws.
“This executive order, based on nothing but years of disinformation, is blatantly unlawful and a naked attempt to suppress the votes of targeted communities – disproportionately impacting the Latino community,” said Roman Palomares, LULAC National President. “We are proud to join this coalition seeking to stop the effort to silence the voice and votes of the U.S. electorate–and particularly of voters of color. Our democracy depends on all voters feeling confident that they can vote freely and that their vote will be counted accurately.”
“The president’s executive order is an unlawful action that threatens to uproot our tried-and-tested election systems and silence potentially millions of Americans. It is simply not within the president’s authority to set election rules by executive decree, especially when they would restrict access to voting in this way,” said Danielle Lang, senior director of voting rights at Campaign Legal Center. “The Constitution is clear: States set their own rules of the road when it comes to elections, and only Congress has the power to override these laws with respect to federal elections. Campaign Legal Center, SDDF and our plaintiffs urge the courts to see this executive order for what it is: an unconstitutional executive overreach that threatens our freedom to vote.”
“Military families, veterans, caregivers, and overseas voters deserve secure access to the very democracy we serve to protect — no matter where we’re stationed or how we serve,” said Sarah Streyder, Executive Director of Secure Families Initiative. “This new order would mean that the veteran who is a full-time caretaker at home, who has done everything right, may now be shut out of the ballot box due to outdated paperwork. This new order would mean that the military family stationed on the other side of the world from home, who crossed every t and dotted every i — their military ID will no longer suffice, and due to mail delays outside of their control, their ballot will never count.”
“Donald Trump is attempting to wrongfully impede voting by millions of Americans with this latest unlawful executive order. But it will not work. In America voters get to pick their president – presidents don’t get to pick their voters,” said Ambassador Norm Eisen (ret.), the co-founder and executive chair of State Democracy Defenders Fund. “We are proud to stand up for the ability of every American voter to cast their ballots freely and fairly through this litigation.”
“The Arizona Students' Association has seen first hand what these egregious citizenship requirements really are, an attempt to suppress the vote. In Arizona we have a dual track federal registration system and the voters being affected by citizenship requirements are college students registering to vote for the first time, unsheltered voters, and Native voters. There are already extensive citizenship checks in place when registering to vote, Trump's EO is a clear attack on our voting rights. Our student members believe we should live in a country where it's accessible and convenient to be a part of democracy,” said Kyle Nitschke, co-executive director of Arizona Students’ Association.
The president’s order would silence tens of millions of Americans. This new order unlawfully seeks to impose burdensome barriers on U.S. citizens just trying to exercise their constitutional right to vote by requiring redundant paperwork, and by shrinking the timeline in which voters can return our ballots. President Trump’s executive order is an attempt to take control of our elections, and it threatens the right to vote for millions of everyday Americans.
Additionally, the president’s order includes a familiar target: independent agencies. This time, the Election Assistance Commission (EAC). The EAC was created by Congress to support election officials with election administration and “help Americans participate in the voting process,” not make it harder for Americans to vote. The President has no authority to interfere with the EAC.
The demands in President Trump’s executive order are illegal. Read more about our lawsuit here.
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The nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center advances democracy through law. We safeguard the freedom to vote, defend voters’ right to know who is spending money to influence elections, and work to ensure public trust in our elected officials.
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