Groups Ask Court To Uphold Ohio’s Proof-Of-Citizenship Law

A pair of election integrity groups are asking a federal appellate court to uphold Ohio’s law requiring proof-of-citizenship to vote, The Federalist has learned.

“Ohio is right to require proof of citizenship when registering to vote,” Honest Elections Project (HEP) Executive Director Jason Snead told The Federalist. “This case is yet another baseless attempt by left-wing activist litigants to create chaos in elections and to fight any reasonable steps states make to ensure that only citizens are registered to vote.”

Filed by HEP and the Center for Election Confidence (CEC) on Wednesday, the amicus brief obtained by The Federalist urges the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn a temporary ruling by Ohio-based Senior District Judge Solomon Oliver Jr. The Clinton appointee issued a preliminary injunction last month halting enforcement of a state requirement that individuals provide documentary proof-of-citizenship when registering to vote.

As described by Courthouse News, Oliver argued that the contested provision is “preempted by the National Voter Registration Act and increases the likelihood that U.S. citizens fail to register for elections.” The preliminary injunction “suspends the requirement for documentation ahead of the Oct. 5 registration deadline for the midterm election.”

In their brief, HEP and CEC laid out several reasons they say support the state’s request that the 6th Circuit lift Oliver’s blockade.

They first argued that Oliver lacked jurisdiction to issue a preliminary injunction because the members of the left-wing group who brought the suit have since obtained “Ohio driver’s licenses and registered to vote,” “now have [Bureau of Motor Vehicle] records reflecting citizenship,” and “can now vote or update their registrations without ever again being subject to H.B. 54, as the district court acknowledged.” Therefore, the groups reasoned, their claims are now moot.

HEP and CEC further contended that Ohio is likely to succeed on the merits of the case because the U.S. Constitution’s qualifications, electors, and elections clauses “give States exclusive authority to set and enforce voter qualifications in federal elections.” They argued that Ohio’s law complies with that authority and that “Congress lacks power to preempt it.”

“CEC is honored to support Ohio’s common-sense protection for the integrity of its elections,” CEC Executive Director Lisa Dixon told The Federalist. “Like millions of other Ohioans, the voters challenging the law offered proof of citizenship and registered to vote successfully, so this lawsuit should end now.”

At least 12 states have enacted laws requiring proof-of-citizenship in order to vote in elections, according to Ballotpedia.