COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose claims the Department of Homeland Security unlawfully withheld access to United States citizenship records, so he filed a lawsuit in federal court Oct. 24 on behalf of the citizens of Ohio demanding access to those records.
“I swore an oath to uphold our state constitution, and that document clearly requires that only United States citizens can participate in Ohio elections,” said LaRose. “The Biden-Harris Administration is engaging in obstruction and outright abuse of power to prevent us from removing noncitizens from our voter rolls. I take my duty seriously, so if they want a fight over the integrity of our elections, they’ve got it.”
The lawsuit, filed in federal court for the U.S. Southern District of Ohio, lays out evidence that the Biden-Harris Administration, on at least four separate occasions, allegedly failed to provide Ohio access to federal citizenship verification records necessary to prevent noncitizens from voting, according to LaRose. After allegedly refusing for months to directly answer LaRose’s request for access to records beyond the Systematic Alien Verification and Entitlements (SAVE) database, the Department sent a letter on October 10, 2024 formally denying Ohio’s request. The additional records are essential to verifying the citizenship status of all Ohio voters, not just those for whom the Secretary of State has identified an assigned immigration verification number.
“While the administration is blocking access to these records, the Department of Justice is suing or threatening to sue multiple states, including Ohio, who are trying to enforce their citizenship voting requirements,” LaRose added. “It’s hardly a coincidence. The same administration that’s presided over the most reckless, porous immigration policy in our country’s history is also intentionally blocking states from protecting the integrity of their elections.”
U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, sent a letter(opens in a new window) on October 11, 2024 to the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, accusing the department of engaging in “a clear effort to intimidate and interfere with Ohio’s electoral process.” Jordan added, “Under his authority as Ohio’s chief election officer, Secretary LaRose has tried to ensure that eligible voters – and not ineligible noncitizens – participate in Ohio’s elections. … We expect your full cooperation with our oversight of your attempt to prevent states from ensuring that noncitizens do not influence our democracy.”
You can read the lawsuit filing below:
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