Three statewide elected officials in Mississippi are challenging a voter registration order issued by President Joe Biden.
Governor Tate Reeves, Attorney General Lynn Fitch, and Secretary of State Michael Watson — all members of the Republican Party — filed a complaint on behalf of the state challenging Biden’s Executive Order 14019, which they say is an illegal voter registration effort by federal agencies led by the White House.
The order, which was issued in 2021, essentially called on federal agencies to come up with a plan that would promote voter registration, particularly in communities deemed to be marginalized, and incentivize new voters to participate in elections. Another goal of the order was for the federal government to partner with states and other groups to push for ways to make voting easier.
“Executive departments and agencies should partner with State, local, Tribal, and territorial election officials to protect and promote the exercise of the right to vote, eliminate discrimination and other barriers to voting, and expand access to voter registration and accurate election information,” a portion of the order reads. “It is our duty to ensure that registering to vote and the act of voting be made simple and easy for all those eligible to do so.”
The trio of Mississippi GOP officials, all of whom are also members of the State Board of Election Commissioners, argue that the intentions of the order may not be as pure as advertised. The elected leaders insinuated that the agencies were working in lockstep with the Oval Office to register new voters to cast ballots for solely Democrats in elections.
According to the complaint, efforts by watchdog organizations and others to obtain copies of federal agencies’ plans to encourage voter registration were stonewalled. Watson, who filed Freedom of Information Act requests with several federal agencies, was reportedly told on a call between Secretaries of State and the White House that those plans were never intended to be public.
Governor Tate Reeves
“This executive order is a prime example as to why the Biden-Harris administration has been such a disaster. They’re focused on everything except doing their job, and Americans are paying the price. Federal agencies should be prioritizing their core duties, not acting as an extension of the Democratic National Committee. It really goes to show just how far the Biden-Harris administration will go to expand their power, and it’s why Mississippi will continue pushing back when they violate the law.”
Attorney General Lynn Fitch
“We fully support encouraging voter registration and promoting an engaged electorate. But putting the full weight of the Oval Office behind an effort first developed by partisan activist groups and then hiding the agency activities from public scrutiny goes too far. The law does not allow it. Mississippi will not stand for it. The people deserve answers, and we demand accountability here with this suit.”
Secretary of State Michael Watson
“From the day this unlawful Executive Order (EO 14019) was signed, my team and I had hoped it was another Biden Administration word salad with no action. Unfortunately, that was not the case. In 2022, several Secretaries of State and I sent a letter to the Administration asking them to stand down. Our office has since dug in to study the EO’s implementation and sent FOIA requests to ensure we had enough facts to file suit ending this absurd EO. Thankfully, this day has come! We look forward to continuing to push as hard as we can to stop the use of taxpayer dollars for illicit means.”
The complaint by Republican lawmakers was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Kansas. In addition to Mississippi, the complaint was joined by Montana, Kansas, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and South Dakota.
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