A number of advocacy groups filed a lawsuit on Friday against the Alabama secretary of state and attorney general over a recent decision that removed some naturalized citizens who were previously noncitizens from voter rolls. The groups argued that this meant these individuals would need to re-register to vote and “undermined the fundamental right to vote.”
On Aug. 13, Secretary of State of Alabama Wes Allen announced that his office had identified 3,251 people on the state’s voter rolls who had been issued with a noncitizen identification number by the Department of Homeland Security.
Allen instructed the state’s 67 county Boards of Registrars to immediately inactivate and begin removing all individuals who are not U.S. citizens from the rolls. He characterized the move as a strategic effort “to ensure that Alabama has the cleanest and most accurate voter file in the country.”
In their lawsuit, the groups allege that the move was designed to target and threaten the voting rights of naturalized citizens who were once noncitizen legal permanent residents and had been issued noncitizen identification numbers by the Department of Homeland Security.
Some U.S.-born citizens were also removed from voter rolls due to faulty information, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit states that those removed from voter rolls will have to “needlessly re-register” to vote and be verified if they want to vote in the upcoming 2024 election and in future elections.
“Alabama is targeting its growing immigrant population through a voter purge intended to intimidate and disenfranchise naturalized citizens,” the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit argues that Allen directed the inactivation of the voter registrations despite knowing and acknowledging that some eligible voters would have their voter registrations inactivated and removed because they were once issued a noncitizen identification number.
“The Purge Program inactivates and constructively removes thousands of Alabamians from the active voter rolls shortly before the November 2024 general election and forces them to needlessly reregister in order to vote and be registered to vote, based solely on Secretary Allen’s belief that they were at one point issued a noncitizen identification number—even if they have since become naturalized citizens and lawfully registered to vote,” the lawsuit states.
The Secretary of State’s Office said its policy would allow for those who were removed from voter rolls who later became naturalized citizens and eligible to vote to re-register, and once verified, they could vote in Alabama’s elections.
“I have been clear that I will not tolerate the participation of noncitizens in our elections,” Allen said in an Aug. 13 statement.
According to the lawsuit, those who were removed from voter rolls were sent a letter by their county Boards of Registrars. The lawsuit takes issue that the letters did not tell recipients that they may vote in the 2024 election. However, it noted that the recipients received an Alabama voter registration form “which prominently states that a voter cannot register in the fourteen days preceding an election.”
People born outside of the United States can become U.S. citizens by being a lawful permanent resident for five years, marrying a U.S. citizen, showing English proficiency, and passing a civics test.
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall’s office was also provided the list of individuals who were issued a noncitizen identification number for further investigation and possible criminal prosecution.
“This is not a one-time review of our voter file. We will continue to conduct such reviews to do everything possible to make sure that everyone on our file is an eligible voter,” Allen said. “I am hopeful that in the near future the federal government will change course and be helpful to states as we work to protect our elections.”
The plaintiffs in the case are advocacy groups, the Alabama Coalition for Immigrant Justice, the League of Women Voters of Alabama, the League of Women Voters of Alabama Education Fund, and the Alabama State Conference of the NAACP, as well as individuals Roald Hazelhoff, James Stroop, Carmel Michelle Coe, and Emily Jortner.
The lawsuit names as defendants Allen, Marshall, and the chairs of the Elmore, Jefferson, Lee, and Marshall County Boards of Registrars.
The Alabama Secretary of State’s office told The Epoch Times via email that Allen has not yet been served with a lawsuit and his office declined to comment on pending litigation.
