The ACLU of Iowa has won another victory in its ongoing litigation to stop Iowa Secretary of State Matt Schultz’s voter suppression efforts.
A Polk County judge issued a temporary injunction against Schulz’s implementation of a permanent administrative rule that set out a new, improper process to verify the citizenship of a narrow group of voters he suspects of not being U.S. citizens. The injunction will remain in place until the lawsuit is resolved.
An Important Win for Voters
ACLU of Iowa Executive Director Ben Stone said, "Iowa voters should take heart. This is an important step in the case, because the court order means that there will be no inappropriate voter purge or voter intimidation based on a flawed and unreliable process as the case is being litigated."
The latest win is part of the lawsuit filed in August 2012 by the ACLU of Iowa and the League for United Latin America Citizens (LULAC). Main counsel are volunteer attorneys Joseph Glazebrook of Glazebrook and Moe in Des Moines and ACLU of Iowa Staff Attorney Rita Bettis.
This latest, November victory temporarily blocks the Iowa Secretary of State from cross-referencing Iowa’s voter registration list with numerous federal databases.
Schultz wanted to use the cross-check as part of his attempts to identify and remove registered voters who he suspects may not be U.S. citizens. He would have run Iowa’s registered voters through the federal databases to attempt to generate a list of suspected non-citizens.
Can’t Use Flawed Databases
But the databases contain numerous informational errors, were never designed to cross-check voters, contain insufficient data to do so comprehensively, and put the burden on voters to prove their citizenship if they are identified, rightly or wrongly.
In fact, even the federal government agency that runs the databases recommended against using it to cross-check voters.
Schultz is also blocked from sending threatening letters to voters, demanding that they produce documentation of citizenship in just 60 days or face challenge and removal proceedings at the county level.
It’s important to note that obtaining proof of citizenship to correct errors in the system can cost voters hundreds of dollars, in-person interviews with the federal government, and lengthy delays.
One Victory in a Series
The lawsuit started August because Schultz implemented both temporary and emergency voting rules that would intimidate immigrant voters, especially those who have recently become citizens. The new rules would have discouraged them both from registering and from going to the polls.
The ACLU was successful previously in getting an injunction on the temporary administrative rules, just in time for the November 2012 general election. The latest injunction, on the permanent rule, is a second important victory.