OKLAHOMA CITY – It wasn’t clear Friday if the state’s Attorney General’s Office planned to fight the release of protected voter data sought by the Trump administration.
Attorney General Gentner Drummond said in a statement that Oklahoma will fully cooperate with “any lawful requests related to the investigation of voter fraud.”
His office would not say Friday if Drummond believed the federal government could lawfully obtain voters’ social security and driver’s license data.
His comments came hours after the Department of Justice sued Oklahoma State Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax, demanding that he provide them voters’ full name, date of birth, address, complete driver’s license numbers and last four digits of their Social Security numbers.
State law prohibits the release of some of the data sought by the Trump administration, including driver’s license and Social Security numbers.
Drummond’s office would not say Friday morning whether the state would comply with the Trump administration’s demands.
Ziriax declined to release unredacted data in its statewide voter registration list, according to the suit.
In a Feb. 4 letter, Ziriax told the federal agency he was “not legally authorized” to share the unredacted voter registration list, according to the lawsuit.
Oklahoma City television station KFOR previously reported that Ziriax turned over unredacted data, but told the federal agency that under state law, he was “explicitly required” to keep confidential driver’s license and social security information.
“The U.S. Department of Justice is currently examining election systems and data systems across the country to ensure compliance with federal law and safeguard public confidence in the electoral process,” Drummond’s statement Thursday night said. “Oklahoma shares that commitment.”
The U.S. Department of Justice believes the Civil Rights Act of 1960 gives it broad authority to request election records.
Oklahoma was among five states the Department of Justice sued Thursday, bringing the total to 29 and the District of Columbia.
It maintains that the federal agency needs the information to determine if Oklahoma is in compliance with the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 and the Help America Vote Act of 2002.
The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District in Oklahoma City.
“This latest series of litigation underscores that this Department of Justice is fulfilling its duty to ensure transparency, voter roll maintenance, and secure elections across the country,” said U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi in a statement.
While many states have chosen to fight the agency in court, it will not be deterred, said U.S. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon in a press release.
Earlier this month, the Sooner State Party said it was prepared to sue the federal government if it continued to pursue release of the protected information.
A spokesperson for the Oklahoma State Election Board did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Republished in partnership with Oklahoma Voice under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Oklahoma Voice is a part of States Newsroom which is a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oklahoma Voice maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Janelle Stecklein for questions: info@oklahomavoice.com. Follow Oklahoma Voice on Facebook and Twitter.
Barbara Hoberock is a senior reporter with Oklahoma Voice. She has covered the statehouse since 1994 and served as Tulsa World Capitol Bureau chief. Hoberock covers statewide elected officials, the legislature, agencies, state issues, appellate courts and elections.
