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Grimes To Trump: I Won’t Send Kentucky Voter Data

John Paul Henry

  Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes says her office will not release state voter data to President Donald Trump’s election commission.

Trump, a Republican, formed the commission to investigate alleged voter fraud,which he has repeatedly claimed was widespread despite evidence to the contraryAs The Hill reported, the commission’s vice chairmen sent a letter Thursday requesting several pieces of information about voters.

From The Hill:

“The letter, sent to the secretaries of state of all 50 states and obtained by The Hill, directs states to turn over ‘publicly-available voter roll data including, if publicly available under the laws of your state, the full first and last names of all registrants, middle names or initials if available, addresses, dates of birth, political party (if recorded in your state), last four digits of Social Security number if available, [and] voter history from 2006 onward.'”

Grimes, a Democrat, issued a statement on Twittersaying she would not release state voters’ sensitive personal data to the federal government.

“The president created his election commission based on the false notion that ‘voter fraud’ is a widespread issue — it is not,” she said. “Indeed, despite bipartisan objections and a lack of authority, the president has repeatedly spread the lie that 3-5 million illegal votes were cast in the last election. Kentucky will not aid a commission that is at best a waste of taxpayer money and at worst an attempt to legitimize voter suppression efforts across the country.”

 

  Grimes joins officialsin California and Virginiawho have so far refused to send the commission information.

Erica Peterson is a reporter and Kentucky Public Radio correspondent based out of WFPL in Louisville, Kentucky.
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