CHEYENNE – The final bill awaiting consideration on the office of Governor Mark Gordon became the law on Friday after having let him pass without his signature.
Bill 156 of the Chamber makes several modifications to the way in which the elections are carried out in Wyoming. It obliges voters to be residents of Wyoming for no less than 30 days before an election, requires proof of residence and American citizenship to register to vote and obliges the county to refuse registration if there is “an indication” that the person is not an American citizen.
Gordon said he agreed with authorizing him only American citizens and residents of Wyoming to vote in the state, but has expressed several concerns concerning the bill.
“Because I believe in adequate controls to ensure that only qualified voters can vote, I allow this bill to become law despite the probability that it invites disputes,” Gordon said in a statement.
Gordon is in question a dispute can come from HB 156 to compete with the American Constitution.
He wrote in his declaration that the requirement of residence of the law could interfere with its implementation. The federal law provides that no citizen will be subject to a requirement of residence to vote during an election for the president or the vice-president, which directly contradicts HB 156.
The constitution of Wyoming also requires a minimum age of 21 years, which the American Constitution prevails over the 26th amendment as a supreme right of the country.
Gordon said in his declaration that federal or state law would prevail in a legal competition is a question that should be resolved in court.
The governor also challenged the obligation for the clerks to refuse registration if there is “an indication” that the applicant is not an American citizen in his recording, calling for this “large -scale” addition.
“This standard can be difficult to administer for the clerks, because it is not clear and perhaps annoying for our County clerks to apply systematically with any degree of certainty,” wrote Gordon.
He has provided examples of how a resident in good faith and an American citizen can have well -used identity cards, bleached by the sun or wrinkled, especially in the elderly of Wyominites.
“Without a doubt, it is up to the voter to ensure that all their articles ” are in order before I can vote, but I am still concerned about the fact that the imprecision of the language of this act could lead the clerks to be mistaken on the side of the supply or the underestlement,” wrote Gordon.
Goshen County clerk, Mark Feagler, told WTE that it could be difficult to verify the truth of the documents showing proof of 30 days.
“I firmly believe that people should be American citizens before they can vote and that they should only be able to vote in a specific place,” said Feagler. “It is the administration to understand how to administer this and what will be done if someone sign the oath (of residence at 30 days) and that is not true.”
Secretary of State Chuck Gray celebrated the adoption of the bill, because it was one of his main priorities before this year’s legislative session.
“Proof of citizenship and proof of residence for recording to vote are both important. Only citizens of the United States, and only Wyominites, should vote in the Wyoming elections. Period,” Gray said in a statement.
HB 156 makes Wyoming the first state of the country to apply proof of citizenship so that the registration to vote for all elections. It was the first priority of the Gray conservative reform reform program, which he published in December.
The bill adopted the House of Representatives of Wyoming 51-8 in third reading, and the Senate of Wyoming 26-4 in third reading.
“Since this legislation does not respect the original construction of our constitution or the federal law in its requirement of duration, I cannot sign it as such,” wrote Gordon. “Because I believe that this act – although redundant – offers useful improvements, I leave this bill without my signature.”
The law will not take into force until July 1 and will first apply to the primary elections of 2026. Feagler said that this would give it, as well as other clerks in the county of Wyoming, more time to find the best ways to check the proof of residence.
