Two election integrity organizations have filed a brief asking the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals to reinstate Ohio’s requirement that voters provide documentary proof of citizenship when registering to vote, according to a copy obtained by The Federalist.
The Honest Elections Project (HEP) and the Center for Election Confidence (CEC) filed the amicus brief Wednesday, asking the appellate court to overturn a preliminary injunction issued last month by Senior District Judge Solomon Oliver Jr., a Clinton appointee based in Ohio. Oliver’s order blocked the state from enforcing the proof-of-citizenship requirement, ruling it “preempted by the National Voter Registration Act” and finding it “increases the likelihood that U.S. citizens fail to register for elections,” as reported by Courthouse News. The injunction lifted the documentation requirement ahead of the Oct. 5 registration deadline for this year’s midterm election.
“Ohio is right to require proof of citizenship when registering to vote,” HEP Executive Director Jason Snead said. “This case is yet another baseless attempt by left-wing activist litigants to create chaos in elections and to fight any reasonable steps states make to ensure that only citizens are registered to vote.”
The brief lays out two main arguments for why the injunction should not stand.
First, HEP and CEC argue Judge Oliver lacked jurisdiction to issue the injunction in the first place, because the individuals who brought the underlying lawsuit have since obtained Ohio driver’s licenses and registered to vote. The groups say those plaintiffs “now have [Bureau of Motor Vehicle] records reflecting citizenship” and “can now vote or update their registrations without ever again being subject to H.B. 54, as the district court acknowledged” — meaning, they argue, the case is moot.
Second, the groups contend Ohio is likely to prevail on the merits because the Constitution’s qualifications, electors, and elections clauses “give States exclusive authority to set and enforce voter qualifications in federal elections.” They argue the state’s law fits squarely within that authority and that “Congress lacks power to preempt it.”
“CEC is honored to support Ohio’s common-sense protection for the integrity of its elections,” CEC Executive Director Lisa Dixon said. “Like millions of other Ohioans, the voters challenging the law offered proof of citizenship and registered to vote successfully, so this lawsuit should end now.”
Ohio is one of at least 12 states that have passed laws requiring proof of citizenship to vote, according to Ballotpedia. The outcome of the 6th Circuit appeal could shape how far other states can go in enforcing similar requirements ahead of future elections.
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