Kansas has won a decision at the U.S. District Court level that would require new voters to provide proof of U.S. citizenship.
Judge Eric Melgren ruled Wednesday that the federal Election Assistance Commission would have to add the language required by Kansas law on citizenship to the instructions on federal mail voter registration forms for Kansas and Arizona.
The Kansas secretary of state, Kris Kobach, filed the suit, along with the Arizona secretary of state, and the states of Kansas and Arizona.
The district court found that “Congress had not preempted state laws requiring proofs of citizenship through the National Voter Registration Act,” according to the decision.
Judge Melgren ruled that the federal Election Assistance Commission’s decision denying the states requests to put the citizenship question on the election form to be “unlawful and in excess of its statutory authority.”
The case decision, Kris W. Kobach et al. vs. the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, is online at https://ecf.ksd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2013cv4095-157.