Nevada to provide public data, comply with voter fraud probe

By Alison Noon, Associated Press

Published Friday, June 30, 2017 | 12:24 p.m.

Updated Friday, June 30, 2017 | 10:25 p.m.

CARSON CITY — Nevada's top election official said Friday the state will provide public voter data requested by a White House commission that is investigating claims of voter fraud in the 2016 election, but it will not turn over voters' confidential information.

Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske said she has directed her office to cooperate with President Donald Trump's Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity.

The commission asked every state on Wednesday to turn over about a dozen categories of voter data if state law says it is publicly available, including names, military statuses, the last four digits of Social Security numbers, "voter history (elections voted in) from 2006 onward," and "addresses." Many states consider information that could fall into some of the groups of requested data to be confidential.

Cegavske said she will release voter data that Nevada makes openly available such as voter names, physical addresses, dates of birth, party affiliation and turnout — information that anyone can request because it is public.

She will shield voter information considered confidential under state law such as Social Security numbers, email addresses and who people voted for.

Nevada is among about 20 states that plan to cooperate but will not provide everything that was requested. Other states responding like Nevada include Connecticut, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma and Texas.

Nevada Rep. Dina Titus pressed state officials to refuse to comply with the entire federal government request in a letter on Friday, echoing several Democratic election chiefs in other states who have said the mass request for sensitive information invades privacy and is based on false claims of fraud.

"It is inappropriate to use state resources to soothe the President's ongoing insecurities about his own election," Titus, a Democrat, wrote to Cegavske and Gov. Brian Sandoval, both Republicans. "I urge you to defend the integrity of Nevada's elections and protect Nevada voters from being used in a political ploy to assuage the President's paranoia."

States that have refused to provide information include Democratic strongholds New York and California and largely Republican states including Kentucky, Mississippi and Tennessee.

Nearly 20 states were undecided Friday on how to respond to the request.

Hillary Clinton won Nevada in the presidential election with 47.9 percent of the vote to Trump's 45.5 percent.