A sweeping elections bill passed a House committee Thursday after the Kentucky County Clerks Association urged lawmakers to vote against the measure over fears the extensive changes would be too difficult for state and local officials to implement ahead of the swiftly approaching May primaries.
“This would result in significant changes to the Kentucky election law only weeks before the May primary and after some absentee ballots, probably quite a few, have already been submitted to the county clerk,” President of the Kentucky County Clerks Association Danetta Allen said. “This would create confusion for both the voter and the administrators alike.”
The bill would have state officials enter into new federal agreements for citizen verification, allow county officials to publicly upload scanned ballot images and let judicial candidates to identify themselves as a Republican or Democrat in nonpartisan races.
That’s a slice of the 44-page bill that passed a House committee Thursday where lawmakers voted along largely partisan lines to advance it. Several Republicans who voted “yes” expressed hopes there would be amendments on the House floor, while some Democrats said they found the bill unnecessary.
The elections omnibus House Bill 534 does more than touch on nonpartisan races. It ranges from requiring the use of federal citizenship verification systems to allowing county clerks to upload scanned ballot images.
“Obviously we want to not do anything that's going to be cumbersome to our county clerks out there. So I would love to see you clean this up before we get to the House floor,” said Republican Rep. Ryan Bivens of Hodgenville as he voted in favor, despite reservations.
Democratic Rep. Mary Lou Marzian of Louisville voted no, explaining Kentucky’s elections are safe and instances of fraud are too rare to warrant sweeping legislation. Proven cases of voter fraud are exceptionally rare.
Read the rest at LPM News.
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