It is important to note that "states have the primary role in establishing election law and administering elections," as stated in a May 15, 2024, request for documents from Committee on House Administration Chairman Bryan Steil (WI-01). Steil is actively pursuing documentation involving federal agencies allegedly involved in a strategic plan to implement EO 14019. Steil also pointed out in his August 29, 2024 press release that while "voter registration and fairness of our national elections" is a "matter of great concern to American citizens, the President's role is limited to enforcing enacted legislation passed by Congress: therefore, the President must exercise great restraint when attempting to act on election law."
In June 2024, Chairman Steil "issued subpoenas to 15 Biden Administration agencies requesting their strategic plans and third-party communications related to E.O. 14019." On July 29, 2024, Steil sent letters to the "Department of Labor, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Agriculture" demanding they share their strategic plans after "failing to comply with a lawfully issued congressional subpoena." As of August 29, 2024, not a single agency had complied with the subpoenas, as evidenced by a third set of subpoenas sent by Chairman Steil on August 28, 2024.
In May 2024, The Heritage Foundation released documentation on EO 14019, calling the E.O. "Bidenbucks" because of its "activist origins." Heritage named Demos, "a far-left think tank with close ties to the Biden Administration" who published "Executive Action to Advance Democracy: What the Biden-Harris Administration and the Agencies Can Do to Build a More Inclusive Democracy." It was, as the Heritage documents aptly assert in a May 15, 2024 memo, "a road map for the use of Executive power" to "interfere in American elections" by providing access to voter registration services using federal resources and agencies. The memo further states that the Biden Administration has effectively directed agencies "to carry out this function by, among other ways, 'soliciting and facilitating approved, nonpartisan third-party organizations and State officials to provide voter registration services on agency premises.'"
According to information acquired through FOIA by Heritage, agencies began implementing EO 14019 in 2021. The agencies implementing EO 14019 include the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the U.S. Railroad Retirement Board, the Peace Corps, the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), the Department of Labor (OSEC DOL), the Department of Treasury (paid time off for EO 14019), the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM), the
The Foundation for Government Accountability is also tracking the issue. FGA's Senior Director of Federal Affairs, Stewart Whitson, spoke about the "impact of big money" in 2020 "pioneered through Zuckerbucks." Whitson now says he has evidence to prove federal resources to promote voter access and registration. In a July 8, 2024 congressional hearing, he said that E.O. 14019 is "Zuckerbucks on steroids." Whitson testified about using Small Business Administration offices to register voters nationwide and get out the vote, citing evidence from Michigan, a key battleground state. Whitson believes government grants and monies "directly benefit the Biden campaign."
The Biden-Harris Administration's Department of Justice (DOJ) has been more than happy to play along, issuing in September new guidance that addresses limitations on "when and how jurisdictions may remove voters from their voter lists." This guidance is most likely a response to various nationwide third-party initiatives to ensure voter rolls are maintained according to the laws on the books. DOJ guidance on proper National Voter Registration Act NVRA list maintenance contends third-party requests for the removal of voter roll registrants are improper. In reality, regardless of the provenance of a removal request, it is the county election boards that ultimately decide which registrants to remove. Progressive groups often sue counties for voter roll maintenance activity even though it is an NVRA requirement to maintain voter registration rolls properly. The Left and our DOJ regularly define such voter list maintenance activity as "voter suppression and voter intimidation."
While voter registration drives are enjoying a resurgence on both sides of the aisle in response to the 2020 election, Democratic NGOs continue to aggressively get out the vote in any way they can, including legislation that allows for the automatic registration of voters, initiatives to register the homeless, legal and legislative battles to end voter ID and other initiatives to prevent "voter suppression."
Progressive NGOs lobby aggressively for automatic voter registration (AVR), a risky practice because of its propensity to register individuals who may not be eligible to vote. It is well-known that voter rolls are populated with ineligible voters in the best of cases. The Movement Advancement Project (MAP) is a progressive organization that actively promotes the practice of AVR. According to MAP, AVR "modernizes the voter registration process by automatically registering eligible voters through their interactions with state agencies, most commonly when people apply for or renew their driver's licenses." However, as implied in Steil's subpoenas and evidenced in the Heritage Foundation FOIAs, the registrations are most likely happening in various state and federal agencies in many jurisdictions, not just DMVs, made easier by E.O. 14019.
There are two types of AVRs, "back-end AVRs" as in the "case of designated agencies such as state DMVs [that] systematically send information from relevant transactions to state election authorities." This practice is fraught with risks to register individuals who may not be eligible to vote, such as recently migrated alien non-citizens who may have no idea whether they are eligible or who may be encouraged by NGOs at the border to register to vote. Theoretically, voter eligibility is confirmed. However, there is ample evidence of all ineligible voters on rolls in every state. With back-end AVR, the voter is automatically registered "but can opt-out later, usually through the mail." The second type of automatic voter registration is known as partial AVR. Partial AVR systems are known as "front-end AVRs." With partial AVR, the voter "is given the opportunity to opt-out of being registered at the time of the relevant agency transaction."
According to MAP, 8 states, plus D.C., have "secure back-end automatic voter registration." 16 states have partial front-end automatic voter registration, and 26 states have no automatic voter registration at all. Regarding population size, MAP shows that 47 percent of the U.S. population lives in states that do not have automatic voter registration. 42 percent of the population lives in states with partial AVR, and 11 percent of the "voting-eligible population lives in states that have back-end secure AVR." Beginning in 2025, Michigan and New Mexico will implement back-end AVR.
MAP's September 4, 2024 update cites automatic voter registration legislation by state. Alaska, Colorado, Delaware, D.C., Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington have already implemented legislation requiring "secure" back-end automatic voter registration. North Dakota is the only state that does not require voter registration. According to North Dakota's Office of the Secretary of State, anyone who has lived in the state for 30 days prior to Election Day can vote.
