A federal lawsuit seeking greater transparency in New Mexico’s voter rolls cites the prohibitive cost to gain access to the rolls, and a vague state law that restricts how the information can be used.
In its complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico in March, the Voter Reference Foundation (VRF), a nationwide voter integrity group, alleges that the $5,400 cost to access the files, and state law that the information be used for “governmental or election and election campaign purposes only and shall not be made available or used for unlawful purposes,” constitute a violation of First Amendment rights.
"Speech sharing non-confidential information about the voting history of New Mexico voters, particularly when used in the manner contemplated by plaintiffs, sits at the zenith of First Amendment protection,” the complaint says. “Discussions regarding voting, elections, electoral processes, and election integrity are issues in which the public does and should have a high level of interest.”
The lawsuit brought by VRF and New Mexico resident Holly Steinberg names Attorney General Hector Balderas and Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver, who said that VRF’s online publication of the rolls was illegal. VRF put the state’s voter roll information on its website – where it has published the rolls of 23 states and Washington, D.C. – last December. The group removed the information while the legal action is pending.
“The Use Restrictions (in the law) make it more difficult, more expensive, and essentially impossible for plaintiff VRF to disseminate information regarding New Mexico’s elections,” the complaint states. “They impose a massive cost on individuals like plaintiff Steinberg who are not affiliated with a political party or candidate or ballot measure campaign, and therefore cannot receive that campaigns’ access to the data.”
The Public Interest Legal Foundation (PILF) says it has found voter rolls rife with deceased registrants, duplicate registrants, and even non-citizen registrants. It some cases, PILF was forced to sue to gain access to the rolls.
"Voter rolls are public documents under the National Voter Registration Act,” Lauren Bowman, spokeswoman for PILF, told the New Mexico Sun in an email. “The Public Interest Legal Foundation has won cases in Illinois, Maine, and Maryland (citing the act). The public has a right to monitor the condition of voter rolls and hold election officials accountable. Clean and accurate voter rolls are essential to free and fair elections."
Paul Gessing, president of the free-market Rio Grande Foundation (RGF), said that his group had no official position on public access to the polls but did cite the need for accurate rolls.
“Unfortunately, when public officials like Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver don't maintain updated and accurate voter rolls that leads to justified suspicion and concern,” Gessing told the New Mexico Sun in an email. “RGF saw this firsthand when Albuquerque Public Schools undertook an unusual (for New Mexico) all-mail election in early 2019 and there were widespread reports of serious inaccuracies in the voter rolls.”
