Tenn. must reform voter registration laws
As Tennessee’s Secretary of State, one of my most important responsibilities is serving as Tennessee’s chief election official.
I firmly believe we are better as a state and nation when we as eligible voters participate in the election process. Our form of government allows us to make our values and priorities known to our elected officials when we are exercising our right to vote.
Through technology, we’ve made it easier to register to vote than ever – citizens can even find a voter registration form in the palm of their hands with our Go Vote TN mobile application. In fact, if you need to update your current registration or register to vote you can go to Govotetn.com and do so in less time that it will take reading this Op-ed.
While we strive to register Tennesseans to vote, it must be done responsibly and in a manner that does not compromise the security of elections. Groups that seek to register large numbers of voters, while typically doing so with good intentions, potentially put legitimate voter registrations at risk.
This past election cycle, it cost the two largest counties in Tennessee tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars. Even more importantly, they jeopardize these citizens’ ability to participate in Tennessee’s elections. While I believe most voter registration drives are altruistic and rely on volunteer labor, there are some that might be motivated more by money and the desire to collect precious voter data.
Election officials in Davidson and Shelby counties experienced a lastminute surge in voter registration applications. A large number of these applications were incomplete or contained incorrect and even false information.
Some groups wait until the final days of the registration period to submit voter registration forms even though in many cases, the groups have been holding onto these forms for weeks and sometimes even months.
For example, in Shelby County, on the last day to register to vote, the election commission received approximately 10,000 registration forms from one organization alone.
In total, a voter activist group submitted roughly 24,000 applications, many with invalid mailing addresses, incorrect date of birth information or social security numbers matching another individual.
The Shelby County election administrator estimates total cost to taxpayers caused by the forms was more than $200,000. This cost includes costs associated with tracking down the voters’ correct information, legal costs and hiring additional workers to process the forms. And she says many of those individuals did not vote in the November election.
It was a similar situation in Davidson County where election officials received voter registration forms in the four digits just before the voter registration deadline. The administrator estimates it cost approximately $35,000 to process and correct forms with insufficient information. We are proposing legislation this year, sponsored by Sen. Ed Jackson, Rjackson, and Rep. Tim Rudd, R-murfreesboro, that will preserve the integrity of the election process while encouraging voter registration and the work of well-intended voter activist groups.
If enacted by the General Assembly, House Bill 1079/Senate Bill 971, as amended, will provide enhanced election security by:
❚ Requiring supplemental voter registration drives of 100 people or more to be conducted only by a person trained on how to properly complete applications and protect confidential information;
❚ Prohibiting organizations from paying individuals based on the number of voter registration forms submitted to the organization;
❚ Requiring applications collected by designated people or organizations to be filed in a timely manner, within 10 days of receiving the voter registration;
❚ Permitting the State Election Commission to assess a civil penalty to people or organizations that submit large numbers of deficient forms.
We want every citizen of voting age in Tennessee to be registered to vote and to participate in the democratic process.
We have worked hard to increase the number of registered voters in our state. This legislation will help make sure those who do register to vote are protected, their personal information is secure, and the integrity of our election process is not compromised.
I urge the members of the General Assembly to pass HB1079/SB971.
Tre Hargett is the Secretary of State of Tennessee.