Alarmed by President's Advisory Commission

To The Editor:

The NAACP, the nation’s preeminent legacy civil rights organization, is alarmed and troubled by the first official action taken by the President’s Advisory Commission on Election Integrity last week, requesting unprecedented voter data from state governments.

In a letter directed to state officials of each state, under the guise of its mandate to investigate vote fraud and 2016 election irregularities, Commission heads Kris Korbach and Vice President Mike Pence asked for suggestions on ways of improving the integrity of U.S. elections, while a second letter sent on the same day by the Dept. of Justice requested personal, private information on millions of registered American voters. This data included the submission of names, addresses, birthdates, partial social security numbers, and party affiliations, voting patterns, records of felony convictions, military service and more.

“The NAACP wants it stated clearly and emphatically that we stand with those states that thus far have committed to non-compliance with this request. We will do everything in our power to resist this call, and we’ll continue to lead the fight for the historical gains we’ve made for African Americans, and for all citizens at the ballot box,” said Leon Russell, chairman of the NAACP Board of Directors. “We see these letters

for precisely what they are—illegal, and a looming threat to our democracy. And we believe that this request represents only the first salvo in a move to implement the widespread suppression of American

voters, the possible purging of the rolls and a rollback of our constitutionally guaranteed voting rights. There is no other plausible use for this type of information.

This is the position of the NAACP.

Janice Bush, President NAACP El Dorado Union County Branch 6034