Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the Government Accountability Board for its failure to check Wisconsin voter registration accuracy.
A law passed by the U.S. Congress in 2002, called the Help America Vote Act, requires states to check the validity of information given by voters in mail-in registrations.
According to court documents, HAVA requires states to check registrations dating back to Jan. 1, 2006, but the GAB allegedly has not run such checks on registrations prior to Aug. 6, 2008.
Because Wisconsin did not follow the terms of this law, thousands of registrations have not been verified and the likelihood of unlawful votes being cast has increased, Van Hollen said in a statement.
He said the casting of unlawful votes diminishes the voting power of law-abiding citizens.
While I regret having to take this action, it is nevertheless necessary and appropriate in order to compel the board to bring Wisconsin's voter registration list into compliance with the law and ensure the integrity of the electoral process in Wisconsin,"" Van Hollen said.
GAB Director Kevin Kennedy said in a statement that Wisconsin's method of verifying voter identity is sufficient to protect against voter fraud.
According to Kennedy, the method of cross-checking registrations that the board is accused of neglecting could cause voters to lose their votes because of technical errors.
He said many discrepancies in voter information are simply due to typographical errors or the use of nicknames.
""The board is committed to properly protecting the electoral process from potential fraud. At the same time, the Board is equally committed to protecting the right of every eligible person to vote in Wisconsin, and that every valid vote must be counted,"" Kennedy said.
