Three GOP States Withdraw From Voter Data Organization ERIC
WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Monday, March 6, the Missouri, Florida and West Virginia secretaries of state withdrew from the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), a nonprofit organization that allows states to share information to help maintain accurate voter rolls. While used by both blue states and red states alike for decades, ERIC has recently been pulled into the ecosystem of right-wing election conspiracies.
In his letter to ERIC, Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft (R) cites ERIC’s refusal to “require member states to participate in addressing multi-state voter fraud” and for allowing a “hyper-partisan individual” to be a non-voting member of its governance board, among other concerns. Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd (R) and West Virginia Secretary of State Mac Warner (R) expressed similar concerns, with Warner objecting to the “opportunity for partisanship in voter registration and list maintenance.”
Alabama withdrew from ERIC earlier this year. Louisiana withdrew in January 2022. Washington, D.C. and 28 states remain members.
Read Missouri’s statement here.