Nevada finds itself at the crossroads of election integrity as voter registration controversies lead to legal battles, holding potential implications for the upcoming elections. The RNC and the Nevada Republican Party filed a lawsuit against Nevada arguing the state failed to maintain accurate voter registration rolls. Democratic election lawyer Marc Elias views the claims as political theater. The Citizen Outreach Foundation tried to get involved but was shut down.
At a Glance
- Republicans filed lawsuits challenging Nevada’s voter roll maintenance practices.
- The lawsuit accuses the Nevada Secretary of State of NVRA violations.
- Varied responses to challenges in voter registration practices across counties.
- The Citizen Outreach Foundation disputes state requirements for voter challenges.
Lawsuits and Partisan Claims
The Republican National Committee (RNC) and the Nevada Republican Party filed a lawsuit against Nevada Secretary of State Francisco Aguilar, alleging violations of the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA). They argue that the state failed to maintain accurate voter registration rolls, maintaining that the lawsuit is based on necessitating an adherence to federal mandates.
Moreover, the lawsuit emphasizes the need to purge the voter rolls more aggressively than currently practiced. However, critics highlight the flawed metrics of this lawsuit, pointing to the use of outdated census estimates, which they believe skews the credibility of the claims.
We have discovered thousands of non-citizens on Nevada's voter rolls, with no action by the Secretary of State. @TeamTrump @GOP and @NVGOP are SUING Nevada to clean up the voter rolls and stop non-citizen voting. https://t.co/upDu1d4FKA
— RNC Election Integrity (@RNCVoteProtect) September 12, 2024
Contentions with Voter Rights Groups
As the courtroom battles escalate, voting rights groups, along with Democrats, assert that these challenges aim to undermine election trust. Prominent legal figures, including Marc Elias and the ACLU, have rallied against such lawsuits, framing them as attempts to intimidate legitimate voters.
“This lawsuit is little more than political theater, designed less to address any real (much less substantial) issue with Nevada’s voter registration lists than to sow public distrust in the security and integrity of our electoral systems.”
The dispute extends as far as claiming that these lawsuits are part of broader efforts to pressure states into enacting unnecessary voter roll purges, threatening the integrity of eligible voters’ rights.
HUGE WIN: 90,000 inactive voters have been removed from the rolls in Clark County, Nevada as a result of our efforts to Protect The Vote.
Election integrity starts with clean voter rolls, and that's why we've brought litigation in key states to compel outcomes just like this. https://t.co/71NAmue2qR
— Michael Whatley (@ChairmanWhatley) August 7, 2024
Citizen Outreach Foundation’s Involvement
The Citizen Outreach Foundation (COF) has stepped into the legal fray, with their Pigpen Project targeting voter roll inaccuracies across Nevada. Their challenges have been largely met with rejection due to a lack of “personal knowledge” as defined by state law.
“It is the opinion of the Secretary of State that such challenges do not meet the requirement of ‘personal knowledge’ of facts supporting the challenge required by NRS 293.535 and 293.547”
Election Integrity Foundation Accuses NV SOS Of Impeding And Discouraging Voter Roll Challenges
COF argues that the stipulation impedes maintaining accurate voter rolls, asserting their commitment to challenging the Secretary of State’s claims regarding election security. This ongoing skirmish between electoral security and voter accessibility is poised to impact the procedural landscape of upcoming elections significantly.
