INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana's attorney general and secretary of state say they want to verify the citizenship status of hundreds of thousands of Hoosier voters ahead of the Nov. 5 election.
They sent a letter to the director of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services with the names of people who they claim registered in Indiana without providing state-issued identification.
The letter, signed by Attorney General Todd Rokita and Secretary of State Diego Morales, states "Indiana is obligated by federal law to 'perform list maintenance' on its statewide voter registration list — including removing voters 'who are not eligible to vote' from the voting rolls.
Rokita and Morales said utilizing USCIS to check the citizenship or immigration status of people in the state is an option "provided by federal law" to verify the citizenship of Indiana voters.
The Indiana Democratic Party responded to the letter, calling it a stunt.
"All this letter serves to do is disenfranchise thousands of eligible Hoosiers, including those with federal IDs attached to an Indiana address, such as active-duty servicemembers, veterans, and Hoosiers living overseas," Indiana Democratic Party Chair Mike Schmuhl said in a statement.
