Sedona.Biz – The Voice of Sedona and The Verde ValleySedona.Biz – The Voice of Sedona and The Verde Valley
    Sedona.Biz – The Voice of Sedona and The Verde Valley Sedona.Biz – The Voice of Sedona and The Verde Valley
    • Home
    • Sedona News
    • Business Profiles
    • Opinion
    • Mind & Body
    • Arts
    • Elections
    • Gift Shop
    • Contact
    • Advertise
    Sedona.Biz – The Voice of Sedona and The Verde ValleySedona.Biz – The Voice of Sedona and The Verde Valley
    Home » Arizona Advocacy Network Statement on Voter File Request
    Arizona

    Arizona Advocacy Network Statement
    on Voter File Request

    July 7, 20171 Comment
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Email Reddit WhatsApp
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email Reddit WhatsApp

    Healing Paws

    logo_arizonaadvocacynetworkBy Alison Marciniak
    Arizona Advocacy Network

    Phoenix AZ (July 7, 2017) – Last week, Kansas Secretary of State and vice chair of the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity Kris Kobach sent letters to all 50 Secretaries of State demanding massive amounts of voter data, vowing to make the lists available to the public. The letter requested information beyond what is usually contained in voter registration records including social security numbers, birthdates, and military affiliation under the assertion that it would be used to improve the integrity and security of voting systems. Secretary of State Michele Reagan did the right thing for Arizona voters by denying the request.

    Kobach’s goal in requesting the voter rolls, although unstated, is presumably to create a nationwide voter database modeled after the Interstate Voter Registration Crosscheck Program. Crosscheck, a project of Kobach’s that compares voter registration lists across state lines to search for individuals that have voted multiple times in the same election, has 32 states participating- Arizona included. Crosscheck’s underdeveloped method of identifying double votes only uses voter’s first names, last names, and dates of birth and has resulted in thousands of false accusations of duplicate voting and the subsequent removal of legitimate voters from the rolls. A study from January of this year found that Interstate Crosscheck could lead to the removal of 200 legitimate voters for every one double vote found. Also concerning is that Kobach likely already has access to Arizonans’ voter registration information through participation in Crosscheck.

    The vast majority of state election officials around the country have signaled that they intend to deny Kobach’s request. If Kobach is able to get access to voter registration data from all 50 states, we expect him to create a nationwide version of Crosscheck. Thousands of false cases of duplicate voting would be reported, leading to widespread wrongful purging of voters from the rolls. Millions of voters with the same first name, last name, and date of birth will be at risk for wrongful accusation of double voting.

    Sedona Gift Shop

    The security risks contained in this request are also quite startling. The letter sent to the Secretaries of States offered two options to transmit the data: via email to a White House address or file hosting services run through the Pentagon that is not currently equipped to appropriately handle encrypted web traffic. In a time where fears of election tampering and the hacking of voter rolls have become reality, the lack of concern for data security contained in this request is troubling. While there are ways to securely aggregate voter registration data such as those used by the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), a publicly run non-profit that utilizes advanced encryption algorithms to protect its data, the Commission has given no indication it has plans to secure the data.  

    The establishment of a nationwide database containing voters’ most personal information is hardly the route we should be taking to improve the integrity and security of our elections. We need funding to repair broken voting machines that cause confusion and long lines at the polls. We need to pass automatic voter registration, which will securely add millions of voters to the rolls, save money, and mitigate the already rare occurrences of voter fraud. States should be joining ERIC to both clean up and grow their voter lists. We need to consider pulling out of Crosscheck and joining ERIC to ensure that our data is secure. Allowing Kris Kobach, a man with a track record of voter suppression, free reign over our voter rolls is dangerous to the future of our democracy.

    1 Comment

    1. Diane Phelps on July 10, 2017 9:38 am

      Well said!


    City Council Weighs ATV Ban Ordinance Proposal
    By Tommy Acosta
    The Sedona City Council at its May 23, 2023 meeting took no action on a proposed ordinance that would ban all off-road vehicles from being driven on state-owned public roads or streets owned by the city. The ordinance, spearheaded by Sedona Mayor Scott Jablow on the premise that such vehicles pose a risk to the health, safety and welfare of the community, would impose heavy fines to anyone driving the ATVs or OHVs on city streets, including S.R. 179 and S.R. 89A. ATV rental companies have admitted that such vehicles are not intended or designed to be driven on paved roads, yet, in Arizona, they are allowed to do so under Arizona Revised Statute 28-1174 (4B). Opponents against the ordinance argued at the meeting that if adopted the ban would cripple the ATV rental industry in Sedona and cause much hardship to the owners and employees, as it would effectively, as written, destroy their livelihood. Read more→
    Recent Comments
    • JB on DORR Hosts Talk on Gun Violence Prevention
    • Mary on No Legal Traction on OHVs
    • Michael Schroeder on DORR Hosts Talk on Gun Violence Prevention
    • JB on Sedona Mayor Scott Jablow talks OHV Ordinance
    • JB on City Council Weighs ATV Ban Ordinance Proposal
    Categories
    © 2023 All rights reserved. Sedona.biz.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.