Maine’s Secretary of State, Matt Dunlap, is suing the federal Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity to obtain information that he, a member of the commission, thinks is being withheld from him. The commission is led by Vice President Mike Pence and Kris Kobach, the Secretary of State of Kansas. From a press release issued by Dunlap’s office:
“Since the Sept. 12 meeting, I have received no correspondence from the commission other than to acknowledge receipt of my information request,” said Sec. Dunlap. “Clearly, there is information about this commission being created and discussed, but I have no access to that information and it has not been provided upon request. My goal in filing this lawsuit is to bring the commission into full compliance with FACA, which would allow me and all of my fellow commissioners to fulfill our roles as full, participating members and provide a meaningful report to the President upon concluding our work.”
Kobach has a long history of promoting voter suppression, and the commission is seen by many as merely a vehicle to do so nationally.