Organizations speak out after Alabama Secretary of State warned voters of misleading mailers

MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG) — Officials with the Voter Participation Center and the Center for Voter Information are speaking out after they say the “Alabama Secretary of State grossly mischaracterized the essential work that we do to register eligible Americans to vote” in a statement about misleading mailers.

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WKRG News 5 previously reported that Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen warned voters of misleading and unsolicited mass mailing of pre-filled voter registration forms.

According to a press release from the VPC and CVI, the organizations focus on helping people in underrepresented populations, and officials said they have helped more than 6.1 million people register.

VPI and CVI assert that the mailer programs have had a positive impact on voters.

“Eligible Alabamians can simply fill out the state voter registration form, sign it, and mail in their voter registration application,” President and CEO of VPC and CVI Tom Lopach said. “VPC and CVI use the very same voter registration forms used by county election officials, and as stated by Secretary of State Allen, we provide sample letters to state election officials months before the mailers go out. If an individual receives our mailer and is already registered to vote, they can simply discard it. We make this clear in the letter that voters receive from our organizations.”

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The organizations plan to send out more than 138,000 pieces of mail in Alabama alone.

“Our hope is that all election officials will support our efforts to promote democracy, instead of misleading and alarming voters about our effective and non-partisan voter registration programs.”

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