Does the Division of Elections have the power to cut people off the active voter list without concrete evidence they’re ineligible?

An attorney for the Alaska State Legislature dug into this question.

When Alaska’s DOE deactivated scores of voters based on “probably very old data” that is not “a formal determination of citizenship,” a multipartisan group of state legislators asked for them to be reinstated, stating that voters should first be proven to be noncitizens, then removed, not the other way around. The department declined this request. Then it declined it again.

In case you need to catch up: In late July, Alaskans learned the DOE removed more than 3,000 voters from the active voter list after requesting the Division of Motor Vehicles complete a “non-routine” hunt through more than 15,200 Alaskans’ records. As the DMV shared in a memo, the data collected for obtaining a driver’s license doesn’t include definite information about citizenship. And nothing resembling this action is described in the DOE’s process for maintenance of the voter list.

As the list of potentially ineligible voters continues to shrink, despite the challenges reported by citizens who found themselves suddenly inactive (like Jeannie McLeod in this piece), Alaskans are questioning whether this unprecedented maneuver was legal in the first place. In a legal memo responding to an inquiry by state Rep. Ky Holland (unaffiliated-HD 9), Andrew Dunmire, legislative counsel, shared the following: “… The plain text of [Alaska’s law on voter roll maintenance] does not authorize the director to inactivate a voter’s registration simply based on a belief that the voter may not be a U.S. citizen.”

In the memo, Dunmire cited case law in which a United States Court for Appeals found similar action to be unlawful. Alaska’s American Civil Liberties Union chapter appears to agree. The ACLU also notes that this move may suppress voter turnout.

At this point, Alaskans haven’t heard from the DOE why this particular change happened in this fashion during this particular election cycle, but it’s important to understand the implications.

• Once a registered voter has been moved to the inactive list, the determination isn’t always easily resolved by a quick call to the DOE, reports show. In fact, many individuals who were removed didn’t become aware through communication from the DOE, but rather by checking their voter registration status.
• This type of action may suppress voter turnout, according to the ACLU.
• Voters who are removed from the active list can still cast a questioned ballot. It’s a more complex process than that of active voters.

You can check your voter registration status here. If you find you’re not an active voter, contact the Division of Elections. If you aren’t able to find a resolution quickly, contact your state legislator. Did you or a friend have an issue voting in the Primary Election on Tuesday? Let us know by replying to this email.

We are closely tracking democracy issues across the state, and as the midterms draw closer, we anticipate voter suppression, misinformation, and disenfranchisement will be on the rise. Stay tuned for more updates and opportunities to take action.

For our Democracy,

The Alaska Center