Rep. Ben Davis, GOP Members of House Elections Committee Urge Secretary Simon to Cooperate with Federal Voter Integrity Request. ST. PAUL – Representative Ben Davis (R–Mission Twp) and fellow Republicans on the House Elections Finance and Government Operations Committee are demanding that Secretary of State Steve Simon comply with a lawful request from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. The request seeks access to Minnesota’s voter registration list following recent convictions for attempted voter fraud in the state. Despite the serious nature of these charges, the Secretary of State’s office denied the request, claiming the data contains personal information. Yet that same information (excluding personal identifiers) is already available for purchase by any citizen through the Secretary’s website for $46. “The Secretary of State claims to have nothing to hide and boasts about transparency,” said Rep. Davis. “But now that real voter fraud has been uncovered, he’s rejecting a legitimate inquiry.” Under the federal Help America Vote Act (HAVA), Minnesota is already required to submit voter registration data—including names, birthdates, and Social Security numbers—for verification. “This kind of information-sharing isn’t new,” Davis continued. “So why the sudden refusal?” Davis emphasized that this is part of a larger pattern. “Minnesota is approaching a billion dollars in fraud across government programs and now it’s touching our elections. We need full transparency, not selective cooperation. This is about protecting our basic fundamental rights as citizens.” He also voiced his frustration with the ongoing need to defend basic election safeguards. “Why do we have to constantly wrestle for the most basic foundation of our democratic process. Folks are weary from it no matter what side of the aisle they’re on. This isn’t a partisan issue. It’s about trust and accountability.” Davis also cited past audits by the Office of the Legislative Auditor (OLA), which identified tens of thousands of questionable registrations flagged by the HAVA-SSA verification system. In another OLA report presented to the legislature in 2018, it was revealed that the Secretary of State’s Office failed to disclose more than 16,000 bad registrations from the 2016 election. Committee members expressed concern that refusing to comply with a routine DOJ request could expose the state to unnecessary legal risk. Other states that refused have faced lawsuits, and with Minnesota facing a projected $6 billion deficit, members warned that the Secretary’s decision could trigger costly legal action from the federal government. The letter, signed by all House Republicans on the committee, reaffirms the caucus’s commitment to election integrity, voter confidence, and full cooperation with lawful federal oversight. A copy of the full letter is available here. |