Texas secretary of state resigns after leading botched voter purge that questioned the citizenship

[IronLionZion]

Texas secretary of state resigns after leading botched voter purge that questioned the citizenship of almost 100,000 people

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/05/28/texas-secretary-state-resigns-after-leading-botched-voter-purge-that-questioned-citizenship-almost-people/?utm_term=.4eda6f3cbd42

Texas’s acting secretary of state, David Whitley (R), resigned Monday just months after leading the botched voter purge of nearly 100,000 suspected noncitizens that erroneously also targeted U.S. citizens, efforts that drew rebukes from a federal judge and numerous voter rights groups.

Whitley’s departure came as the Texas Senate failed to confirm him to the position by a two-thirds majority on the last day of the legislative session. He submitted his resignation letter to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) “effective immediately” just before the final gavel, as reported by the Austin American-Statesman. Abbott accepted his resignation shortly afterward, praising his “moral character and integrity.”

Neither Whitley’s resignation letter nor Abbott’s mentioned the controversy.

“Working alongside the employees in the secretary of state’s office, county election officials, and representatives of our #1 trading partner, Mexico, has been my distinct honor and privilege,” Whitley, 36, wrote in the resignation letter, reproduced by multiple local outlets.

Whitley, a gubernatorial appointee and former aide to Abbott, spent less than six months overseeing Texas elections. He will leave office best known for the disastrous elections-integrity operation that wrongly identified thousands of naturalized citizens as suspected noncitizens illegally registered to vote.

Republicans really don't want US citizens to vote. They're so "concerned" that non-citizens may be voting that they feel the need to do these ridiculous purges. They can tell who is or isn't a citizen based solely on looking at someone or their name.

Someone is worried Texas might be getting bluer.

[UTUSN]

1. K&R

[lagomorph777]

2. "botched" and "erroneous" are rather charitable terms for crimes against democracy.

These crooks aren't concerned about non-citizens voting. They are concerned about Democrats voting.

[iluvtennis]

4. ++ agree, the goal is to keep Dems from voting

[calimary]

3. Buh-BYE!!!

[efhmc]

5. Please pay attention, DUers. This is a very big deal considering the hold the repugs have on

my state. But, alas, you won't.

[IronLionZion]

6. Many DUers are more stuck in the past than even some Trumpsters

and still can't come to terms with some of the red-blue state conversions in recent election years. Texas is also plagued with low voter turnout.

Republicans obviously think Democratic votes matter.

[Honeycombe8]

7. I wonder how a "suspected non-citizen" is determined.

Is it an Hispanic last name? Too many adults using the same address at the same time? I mean, how would you determine that?

I just moved from TX. There's a voter ID law (in Dallas County, anyway), so I had to show DL license, and the name had to match exactly my Social Security name. I had to change my name w/Social Security because my DL had my birth middle name (which TX state actually required...the name wasn't my choice), but SS had my married name as my middle name. Voter registration had to be in the same exact name. Having a middle initial instead of middle name, if that's what's on DL, might kick you out of the voter pool.

[IronLionZion]

8. If someone is a registered Democrat, then they're not a US citizen

they look for BS reasons based on names and race. People change their names like the example you gave. People move. Officials make spelling mistakes on paperwork.

Conservatives move less and have more predictable name spellings. These laws and policies are written to disenfranchise the sort of people who trend liberal, ie move more and have harder to spell names.

Mistakes happen even in blue states. When I moved to DC I registered to vote when I got my license. They somehow lost my voter registration when I showed up to the polls. Thankfully DC has same day voter registration so I showed my license and filled out the forms at the polling place.

[Honeycombe8]

14. Texas doesn't have party registration. So they can't use that.

They have to use something else, such as prior voting history, the names, the address.

[efhmc]

18. Time and again I see written here and on the internet that people

Last edited Tue May 28, 2019, 05:19 PM - Edit history (1)

are registered Texas Dems. THERE is no such thing. There was a shooter who was once IDed in the media as such. Tried repeatedly to correct to no avail. One can choose which primary to vote in but that proves nothing.

[MagickMuffin]

20. I'm not aware of the SS name angle. I've been working the elections since 08

and we aren't required to ask for SS info.

Now if you are just talking about registering to vote then I suppose you could be required to show your SS info. It's been so long since I filled out an application it might have changed since then.

[Honeycombe8]

23. Well, maybe not the SS. The way it worked was this...

My name would be on the voter registration list as Honey Bumble Bee Comb @ 2019 Lovely Ave.

When I showed my DL, which had the name Honey Bumble Comb @ 2019 Lovely Ave., I wouldn't be allowed to vote. The two names had to match exactly.

I forget which one I changed. I guess the registration, since that would have been easier?

I wouldn't have known that, but for a friend who worked at the election polls. She told me to make sure that my names matched exactly.

I did have to change my SS name to match, but that may have been for another reason. I forget. I just remember taking off work to go down to the SS office with certified copy of my divorce papers, which reflected my entire name. Maybe that was for the ACA.

This sort of thing affects a lot of women because of the name change because of marriage. I think Hispanic names vary, too.

[MagickMuffin]

24. In Tarrant County we aren't trained like that

We are instructed to allow anyone to vote based on the other info obtained. If your name and address add up then you can vote.

Plus we are also instructed to allow everyone to vote, even provisionally.

This year all our voter rolls are now done electronically. Which I don't like, I still prefer paper. You just can't go wrong with paper.

[Honeycombe8]

27. A provisional vote doesn't count, IMO.

No one goes back and counts all those votes. And it would require me fixing hte name discrepancy, probably. So it gets back to the same issue. The names have to match exactly.

[Gothmog]

9. Beto deserves some credit

The Texas Democrats were able to block the voter suppression asshole from becoming Sec. of State due to seats picked up due to Beto

Link to tweet

[Honeycombe8]

15. I don't understand. What happened to the elected Sec of State, if Whitley didn't get elected?

Whitley was acting as Sec of State under appointment by the Gov. ???

[MagickMuffin]

21. Yes, he was appointed but 2/3rds of the Senate rejected him

Thank Goddess!!!

[Honeycombe8]

22. So the Gov pulled a Trump? He apptd an "acting" Sec of State in the post indefinitely? nt

[MagickMuffin]

25. Well he was "acting" until the Senate had a chance to confirm him

Instead they rejected him, since he is a reject.

[Honeycombe8]

26. Never mind. That was my question, to begin with. Why is he there?

Is the gov leaving him there as "acting" Sec of State, instead of appointing one that can be confirmed.

He was not "acting" Sec of State, to begin with. You have to be appointed "acting" sec of state. Like Whitaker was apptd by Trump to be "acting" AG.

[MagickMuffin]

28. David Whitley resigned, he is no longer there

Now I suppose Abbott gets to appt another one and they will have to be confirmed by the Senate to be officially installed in that position.

I hope I am making sense.

[Honeycombe8]

29. Ohhhhh. LOL. Well, I guess we beat that dead horse enough. LOL. Thanks.nt

[malaise]

16. This

is the truth

[dalton99a]

17. +1

[efhmc]

19. Good link. Thanks.

[NCjack]

10. bon voyage, MAGAt nt

[Hortensis]

11. Election theft is a major fascistic tactic for getting power.

I'd have to read more, but it at least sounds encouraging that 2/3 of the senate refused to confirm him.

[James48]

12. God I hope I live long enough

to see the day when Texas finally turns blue, and elects a gazillion democrats across the state.

I know that it's only a matter of time, demographically. But I can't wait to see it.

We need to do EVERYTHING we can to turn out Texas democrats, and to turn more folks INTO Texas Democrats.

[CDerekGo]

13. Seems Rethugs

Want to purge voter rolls, of POC, Dems and anyone that believe may actually vote them out of office. While growing up, I had a VERY Liberal History teacher, who marveled at the 100% voting rate of Russian and Cuba. Of course, those Communist Countries voted on Sundays, and voting was required. While I daresay we'll NEVER be required to vote, I would love to see Elections held on a different day of the week. I changed jobs (and work hours) at Post Office, where I went to work at 1pm and worked till 9:30pm, I could easily make it to Voting Booth in mornings on Election Days. Once I became a Carrier, I started at 6:30am, and too many days, wasn't home till 8pm. Knew immediately, that Voting by Mail was the only way I'd ever get to vote again. Even now that I'm retired, I still vote by mail, simply because I never know if I'll be in my Home State to vote.

Maybe another way to avoid any/all of this? Vote by Mail. Didn't entire State of Oregon go to Vote by Mail? No Polling Stations, no costs associated with Polling Stations (rent for Polling Stations, Poll Workers, etc) We'll see if Republikkkans will ever allow that to happen.