The ACLU of South Dakota is calling on Republican Secretary of State Monae Johnson to reinstate residents removed from the voter roll.
On Monday, the Department of Public Safety announced it successfully struck 273 individuals it calls “noncitizens” from the voter roll.
“Ensuring the integrity of our elections is our highest priority,” said Secretary Johnson in a press release. “We are proud of the thorough work done to safeguard South Dakota’s voter rolls. We worked closely with DPS to resolve this issue, and we’re constantly working to make sure that only eligible citizens are participating in our elections.”
It’s unclear how the Department and Secretary of State determined who was a “noncitizen.”
Samantha Chapman is advocacy manager with the ACLU. She says the move was a violation of federal law.
“The National Voter Registration Act prohibits states from mass voter roll purges within 90 days of an election. What we had was a press release from our Secretary of State’s office and from our department of public safety, stating that they have performed a systemic, massive voter roll purge 29 days before the federal election," Chapman said.
Chapman said the move disenfranchises voters and recommends South Dakotans check their voter registration.
The South Dakota Secretary of State’s office has not returned requests for comment.
The deadline to register to vote is October 21st. Absentee voting is already underway. Election Day is November 5th.
