AP18:010
For Immediate Release
January 10, 2018
Contact:
SOS Press Office
(916) 653-6575
California Secretary of State Alex Padilla Statement on Supreme Court Oral Arguments in Ohio Voter Roll Purge Case
SACRAMENTO – Secretary of State Alex Padilla released the following statement after oral arguments in the Supreme Court in Husted v. A. Philip Randolph. The Court will decide whether Ohio’s process of removing voters from its voter registration lists complies with federal voting rights law.
"Today, the US Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case challenging, as unlawful, Ohio's process for removal of voters from the rolls. California and eleven other states submitted an amicus brief standing with voters urging the Court to find that purging voters simply for failing to vote is unlawful."
“The ability to register to vote is a fundamental right of American citizenship. Instituting an unjust 'use it or lose it' voter registration policy runs counter to the spirit of the National Voter Registration Act. The stakes of this case are high and the outcome will have national significance for years to come.”
"The Ohio model is bad for voters and bad for our democracy. The Supreme Court should not give its blessing to undemocratic voter purging laws. California will continue to oppose and actively fight any efforts to undermine voting rights and disenfranchise American citizens."
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