Vote Registration Fraud Charges --
Leahy, Kennedy Ask Ashcroft To Investigate
Following is a letter that Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Sen. Edward
Kennedy (D-Mass.) sent Thursday afternoon to Attorney General John
Ashcroft, asking the Justice Department to immediately investigate
allegations of voter registration fraud and the destruction of voter
registration forms in Nevada and Oregon, and possibly also in other
states. The senators also ask that remedial steps be taken if warranted to
restore voting access to any citizens whose registration forms may have
been destroyed. Leahy is the Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary
Committee, which has oversight authority over the Justice Department, and
Kennedy is a senior member of the panel. The text of the letter follows --
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October 14, 2004
The Honorable John Ashcroft
Attorney General
United States Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20530
Dear Attorney General Ashcroft:
We write with profound and urgent concern about news reports of the
systematic destruction of registration forms submitted by Democratic voters
in Nevada and Oregon. As you know, it has been alleged in the last two
days that Voters Outreach of America, a private company under contract with
the Republican National Committee, has solicited voter registration forms
in Las Vegas and Reno, Nevada, and Portland, Oregon, only to destroy
hundreds or even thousands of registration forms submitted by Democrats.
If the allegations are true, many citizens who have every reason to believe
they are registered to vote will be turned away from the polls on November
2.
The company, which is run by Nathan Sproul, the former head of the Arizona
Republican Party, reportedly also has run registration drives in
Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, Minnesota, West Virginia, and Florida,
leading to fears that similar illegal activity may be occurring or may
already have occurred in those states. Indeed, there are widespread
allegations of the firm’s misconduct – in addition to the allegations that
it has destroyed voter registration forms, librarians in Oregon have
recently alleged that the firm falsely attempted by phone and mail to
deceive them into believing Voters Outreach of America was engaging in a
nonpartisan voter registration drive.
The level of our concern has been heightened by the comments yesterday by
FBI Special Agent David Schrom that were reported by the Associated Press.
Special Agent Schrom told the AP that no Federal investigation had been
launched either in Las Vegas or in Reno, and he suggested that any
investigation would likely fall under State jurisdiction. These statements
are in apparent conflict with assurances made yesterday by representatives
of your Civil Rights Division, who stated that the matter was under
investigation by the Department’s Criminal Division.
In light of these disturbing allegations and scattered public reports of
other voter fraud activities, please respond to the following questions as
quickly as possible:
(1) Has the Department of Justice opened an investigation of the
allegations that Democratic registration forms were destroyed by Voters
Outreach of American in Nevada? If so, who is in charge of this
investigation?
(2) Has the Department opened an investigation in Oregon? If so, who
is in charge of this investigation?
(3) Has the Department opened an investigation in any other States in
which Voters Outreach of America has operated? If so, in which States?
Please provide the person or people in charge of each such investigation.
(4) Leaving aside the merits of the particular allegations at issue
in Nevada and Oregon, do you believe that it violates any Federal law, or
implicates any Federal interest, to destroy voter registration forms based
on partisan affiliation in advance of a Federal election?
(5) If these allegations are found to be sound and in violation of
Federal criminal law, what efforts can and will the Department of Justice
undertake to make whole the victims of this fraud? Will you work,
beginning immediately, with the States of Nevada and Oregon to ensure that
citizens whose registration forms were destroyed will be able to vote in
the November 2 election?
The right to vote is the most basic right that any American citizen has in
participating in their government. Americans have died and are dying to
defend that right. The Department of Justice has the responsibility to
vigorously defend the registration and voting process from those who may
conspire to subvert it for their own partisan purposes.
We, in our oversight capacity concerning the work of the Department of
Justice, and the American people, in their interest in protecting the most
basic sacred right, need immediate assurances that all that should be done
is being done to vigorously defend the public’s voting rights, and that
full remedies to restore voting access will be promptly implemented if they
are warranted. At the very least, you should launch an immediate
investigation into the activities of Mr. Sproul and his firm and collect
the information needed to allow you to alert local authorities to potential
problems on Election Day, so those officials, with other appropriate
authorities, can make immediate preparations to deal with the defrauded
registrants fairly and efficiently. The response that we have seen so far
is not encouraging and pales in comparison to the seriousness of these
allegations.
Given the urgency of this matter, we ask for at least an interim response
to these questions by Tuesday, October 19.
Sincerely,
PATRICK LEAHY EDWARD M. KENNEDY
United
States Senator United States Senator
