(The Center Square) – The Washington state House has passed a bill, which was introduced last session, that would impose new rules on how individuals can challenge a voter registration for failing to be a U.S. citizen.
Proponents of House Bill 1916 argued prior to the Feb. 10 vote that the legislation would reduce frivolous or baseless challenges, but opponents countered that it will chill efforts to maintain election integrity.
Rep. Jim Walsh, R-Aberdeen, told colleagues that the bill raised the barrier for people “to exercise their lawful duty to act as a check on a system of registering voters that does not have enough checks and balances in it.
“We ought to encourage more people to act as the check on the system,” he said.
Currently, if an individual believes a person is improperly registered to vote for reasons such as incorrect address or not being a U.S. citizen, the person can challenge it with the country auditor. Depending on the evidence, the county auditor can schedule a hearing in which the challenger must prove the registration is improper “by clear and convincing evidence.”
Under HB 1916, challenges can no longer be based on various searches, including the voter registration database. The challenger must also fill out a challenge form and signed affidavit. The bill makes it so the form must be signed in ink, which means it cannot be filed electronically.
The bill originally required that individuals who challenge voter registration to live in the same county as the voter themselves, but the provision was removed on the House floor prior to its passage.
The House floor amendment debates also discussed whether or not challengers should face potential legal ramifications.
One provision makes a challenger guilty of perjury if they “knowingly provide false statements,” while a separate clause makes it a misdemeanor to file a challenge “without reasonable cause.”
“Challenging someone’s constitutional right to vote is an extremely serious offense,” HB 1916’s sponsor Rep. Beth Doglio, D-Olympia, told colleagues on the House floor. “That challenge should be done under the penalty of perjury.”
She also said that “across this country and across this state, we’ve seen a surge in mass voter registration challenges, often based on flawed data, conspiracy theories, and unreliable technology.”
“The vast majority of these challenges are rejected, but not before they over-whelmed election administrators, intimidate voters and discourage lawful participation in our elections,” she said. “These laws have historically been used to target newly naturalized citizens, voters of color, students, people voting overseas, people with disabilities. Even a baseless challenge can make an eligible voter think twice before going to the polls.”
However, Rep. Jeremie Dufault, R-Selah, said the structure of the state’s voter registration process warrants scrutiny of those registered. Under the state registration system, individuals do not have to provide proof of citizenship in order to vote.
The Center Square has previously reported instances of foreign nationals being registered to vote without their knowledge, while one foreign national received no jailtime after illegal participating in elections 28 times.
“People do not have to show up at polls,” DuFault said. “They do have not to have show an ID. They don’t have prove who they are. They don’t even have the prove that they’re the ones who are signed the ballots. These are the folks who need to make sure that they properly voting in our state.”
Last week, Washington state senators passed a bill restricting access to voter registration data. That bill has yet to be scheduled for a public hearing in the House.
