Official in contempt of voter-ID ruling

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — A federal judge ruled Wednesday that Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach violated an order that some voters were eligible to cast ballots while a lawsuit challenging a state law requiring proof of U.S. citizenship worked its way through the courts.

U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson found Kobach in contempt of court. She didn’t impose a fine but ordered Kobach to pay damages, including attorney fees.

The American Civil Liberties Union sought the contempt ruling after Kobach refused to update the state’s election guide or ensure that county officials sent postcards to residents who registered at driver’s licensing offices without providing citizenship documents.

Robinson said in March that she had made it clear that voters covered by a May 2016 injunction she imposed were not to be treated differently than other voters.

Kobach, a Republican who has aggressively sought to prosecute allegations of voter fraud in his state, served as vice chairman of the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity, which was created to examine voter fraud nationally. President Donald Trump dissolved the panel in January after it became embroiled in lawsuits seeking to curb its authority and resistance from states that accused it of overreach.