Governor Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) said on this week’s broadcast of “Fox News Sunday” that the Department of Justice was suing his state over a “common sense” law that removes noncitizens from voter rolls.
Youngkin said, “To be clear, this is not a purge. This is based on a law that was signed into effect in 2006 by then-Democrat Gov. Tim Kaine. And it starts with a basic premise that when someone walks into one of our DMVs and self-identifies as a noncitizen, and then they end up on the voter rolls, either purposely or by accident, that we go through a process, individualized – not system, not systematic – an individualized process based on that person’s self-identification as a noncitizen to give them 14 days to affirm they are a citizen and if they don’t, they come off the voter rolls. And by the way, they have one last safeguard, which is they can come and same day register and cast a provisional ballot. So to describe this as something as a purge is wholly inaccurate.”
He continued, “Back in 2006, the then-Justice Department actually approved of this law and said that it is not only further constitutional, but we have given it thorough review, and we’re OK with you moving ahead with it. Now, 25 days last week before the election, a Justice Department decides they are going to bring suit after this law has been in effect for 18 years, administered by Democrat and Republican governors. And this is the reason why I believe that Americans and Virginians wonder what the Justice Department is up to. It’s been in effect for 18 years. It’s been applied universally by Republican and Democrat governors. And now all of a sudden, when Virginia is getting tight, it launches a lawsuit against the Commonwealth of Virginia when we are trying to make sure that citizens vote, not noncitizens.”
Youngkin added, “It is common sense. Listen, elections in the United States should be decided by citizens.”
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