Neither Gov. Mark Gordon nor Secretary of State Chuck Gray are on this year’s ballot, but the state’s top two officials are squaring off on Wyoming’s election law.
State statute and the Wyoming Constitution require U.S. citizenship to register and to vote in the state’s elections, but both officials agree — to a certain extent — that more must still be done to ensure non-citizens do not vote in Wyoming.
Gordon and Gray, however, disagree on the right solution.
The dispute goes back to at least April, when the governor vetoed a proposal by the secretary to add proof of residency to the voter registration process. It was the second time in two months that Gordon rejected rules proposed by Gray on the basis that the regulations exceeded the scope of the secretary’s legal authority.
“These rules undertook a thorough vetting process, and received overwhelming support from the people of Wyoming during the public comment period. They should have been signed,” Gray said at the time.
In the months since, Gray has criticized Gordon’s veto publicly inop-eds, several press releases and comments made to the state canvassing board.
Malcolm Ervin, Platte County clerk and president of the Wyoming County Clerks’ Association, addresses the Wyoming state canvassing board as it meets Aug. 28, 2024 to certify the results of the 2024 primary election. (Maggie Mullen/WyoFile)
The secretary maintains the rules are necessary to prevent voter fraud. He’s also pointed to one particular case in Campbell County, where a non-citizen registered to vote.
After Christian Jesus Lopez Sanchez pleaded guilty in federal court to making a false statement in an application for a U.S. passport by using a counterfeit birth certificate, the U.S. Department of State notified Gray’s office that Lopez Sanchez was registered to vote in Campbell County and had done so in 2020.
“This letter is both a request to remove this individual from the voter rolls and a referral for criminal prosecution,” Gray wrote in an Aug. 17, 2023, letter to Campbell County Clerk Cindy Lovelace and Campbell County Attorney Nathan Henkes.
The clerk’s office confirmed to WyoFile that the voter registration was canceled, but records indicate no criminal charges were brought. Henkes did not respond to WyoFile’s request for comment. WyoFile did not receive a response from Gray’s office after asking if it had been given an explanation for the lack of criminal charges.
The governor, meanwhile, has stood by his decision to veto the rules and ignored Gray’s criticisms.
In late September, however, Gordon issued an executive order calling on state agencies and county clerks to prevent and report non-citizen voting efforts.
“The Governor has heard concerns from Wyoming residents about the effects the Biden-Harris Administration’s border policies may have on non-citizens attempting to vote in Wyoming’s elections,” Michael Pearlman, spokesperson for the governor, told WyoFile in an email.
Gov. Mark Gordon signs legislation into law during Wyoming’s 2024 legislative session. (Mike Koshmrl/WyoFile)
“While the Governor remains confident that Wyoming’s elections are safe and secure, his Executive Order reaffirms his commitment to that ideal, to the extent of his authority under the Wyoming Constitution. The EO provides guidance to state agencies should any federal policies be enacted in the future regarding non-citizen voter registration efforts.”
While Gordon and Gray disagree on how to prevent non-citizens from voting in Wyoming’s elections, both echo criticisms that Republicans increasingly made over the summer of the Biden administration, its southern border policies and the president’s 2021 executive order on voting access.
There have been just three instances of voter fraud convictions in Wyoming in the past 23 years, according to a database created by the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.
Executive orders
Gordon’s executive order makes three explicit directives.
For one, it prohibits state agencies from providing voter registration materials to non-citizens or from coordinating with any federal programs or agencies to provide those same materials to non-citizens in Wyoming.
It also requires any state agency entering into, or renewing contracts with, federal agencies or partners to confirm there is no requirement to provide voter registration materials or activities to non-citizens.
And “state agencies under my authority will expeditiously report any suspected instances of non-citizen voting that they may encounter in the course of carrying out their statutorily mandated duties to the appropriate authorities immediately,” the order states.
The order also points to the Biden administration’s Executive Order 14019. Described by the Whitehouse as an effort to boost voter registration and participation ahead of the 2024 election, Republican officials argued the order infringed on state powers to control election procedures.
The order was challenged in court. Gray signed onto an amicus brief in the case, but the U.S. Supreme Court rejected the challenge Monday.
Secretary of State Chuck Gray exits the House of Representatives on the opening day of the 2024 legislative session. (Ashton J. Hacke/WyoFile)
Gordon’s order also encouraged “the Secretary of State and the County Clerks to continue to effectively and efficiently use the tools provided to each of them by Wyoming’s election code to investigate and verify voter registration in order to preserve Wyoming’s proud legacy of successful, well-executed, and secure elections.”
Response
Gray said Gordon’s executive order comes up short.
“[It] demonstrates he is willing to do the bare minimum to get his allies in the media to try to trick people into believing something is being done when it really isn’t,” Gray wrote WyoFile in an email.
A proper solution would have been for the governor to sign Gray’s proposed proof-of-residency rules earlier this year, the secretary added.
Gordon however, is sticking to his guns.
“While the Governor appreciates the enthusiasm of the Secretary of State on this issue, the Secretary’s rulemaking authority is only an extension of what the Legislature is willing to give him,” Pearlman wrote in an email to WyoFile.
“As a fellow elected with a great respect for the separation of powers, the Governor does not wish to overstep on those powers” Pearlman continued. “Should the Legislature wish to grant more authority to the Secretary of State instead of our county clerks, they may certainly do so.”
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