Washington’s Secretary of State (SOS) has eliminated a residency requirement for voter registration, sparking shock online.
The residency requirement was previously enshrined in the state’s Constitution where a person must be a resident of the state for 30 days to register to vote.
Now, thanks to SOS Steve Hobbs and Attorney General Bob Ferguson, people registering to vote no longer need to adhere to this requirement.
The requirement has already been removed from voter registration forms, per The Center Square (TCS)
The outlet reported that the rulemaking occurred after Hobbs and Ferguson agreed to a consent decree earlier this year to settle a 2023 lawsuit.
This lawsuit argued that the constitutional provision violated federal law due to a 2018 state law.
This nearly eight-year-old law allowed Washington voters to register to vote as late as 8 pm on Election Day, as outlined by TCS.
SOS removed the requirement for people registering to vote to attest that they have been a resident of Washington for 30 days during the June 25 rulemaking session.
“The Consent Decree is a backroom deal that bypasses the state constitution, legislature, and the citizens of Washington,” Republican Dale Whittaker, who is running for SOS, posted on his website.
“This is a power-grab by activists using the courts and willing supplicants to make wholesale changes to state election practices hoping it flies under the radar of public and legal scrutiny.”
“The 30-day residency requirement is a constitutional mandate that cannot be disregarded, and the recent court action does just that.”
Kittitas County Auditor Bryan Elliot told TCS, “my biggest concern is the rapid implementation of this change in a Presidential Election year.”
“Our offices are agile, but this action has the potential to create further mistrust of the voter registration system, especially when state law and the state constitution both still contain language that is contrary to the consent decree.”
Resist the Mainstream reported last week on another state shocking the internet by changing its voting rules just ahead of the November election.
As of Friday, Wisconsin voters can once again return absentee ballots via drop box.
The state’s Supreme Court 4-3 decision reversed the 2022 near-total ban on ballot drop boxes that the state’s high court imposed two years ago.
Conservatives on the court opposed taking up the case, citing the legal principle that courts should honor precedent.
Liberals on the court concluded the previous ruling was wrongly decided.
X users sounded the alarm over the news, especially because Wisconsin is a state known for close races.
Biden, for example, won Wisconsin by just over 20,000 votes in 2020; a margin of victory of less than 1 percent.
“I tried to warn people. No one listened,” Scott Preseler posted.
Another user then chimed in: “Communist Dems must rely on cheating to win.”
This ruling is a result of liberals gaining a majority last August when newly elected Justice Janet Protasiewicz took office, Wisconsin Public Radio (WPR) stated.
She replaced retiring conservative Justice Patience Roggensack.
“Elections have consequences,” one account quipped.
WisGOP Chairman Brian Schimming blasted the decision in a statement obtained by WPR.
“In a setback for both the separation of powers and public trust in our elections, the left-wing justices on the Supreme Court of Wisconsin have obeyed the demands of their out-of-state donors at the expense of Wisconsin,” he said.
“This latest attempt by leftist justices to placate their far-left backers will not go unanswered by voters,” he added, as outlined by WPR.
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