Deep-red state removes 28% of registered voters from its rolls in massive purge

02 May 2024

A 50-year-old Wyoming state law mandating regular purges of voter rolls just resulted in the removal of more than a quarter of the Cowboy State's registered voters, according to a new report.

Local news site WyoFile reported that state authorities have removed approximately 83,500 names from its database of registered voters since 2022, which amounts to roughly 28% of Wyoming voters. State law requires that every February, the secretary of state's office has to remove all registered voters from the rolls who didn't vote in the most recent election. This means that any Wyoming voters who were registered in 2020 but didn't show up during the 2022 midterms may be surprised to learn this November that they aren't registered.

"Our concern is simply people not realizing that they’re no longer registered and not bringing with them the appropriate materials to get re-registered, because you can register at the polls," AARP spokesman Tom Lacock told WyoFile.

As Lacock mentioned, Wyoming is one of roughly 20 states that allow for same-day voter registration. According to Rock the Vote, the Cowboy State's same-day registration law allows for voters to not only register on the day of the election, but also during early voting — provided voters bring required identification documents with them.

Acceptable forms of identification to register and to cast a ballot include a Wyoming driver's license or ID card, a valid U.S. passport, a tribal nation ID card, a U.S. military identification card and some forms of student ID. Prospective voters will be turned away if they try to register with just a Medicare or Medicaid card or a concealed carry permit for firearms. However, if a voter is already registered, they can obtain a ballot by showing one of those documents.

In a statement to WyoFile, Wyoming Secretary of State Chuck Gray (R) defended the law requiring regular purges as necessary to keep voter rolls current in the event that a registered voter dies or moves away.

"Voter roll hygiene and voter registry maintenance is extremely important to maintaining integrity and confidence in our electoral process," Gray said.

The law stipulates that voters at risk of having their names removed from Wyoming voter rolls have a letter sent to their last known address informing them that their status as a registered voter is at risk. The last round of letters went out in 2023, urging voters to contact their county clerk if they wished to remain registered.

According to Laramie County Clerk Debra Lee, the enormous size of the February 2024 purge was due to the fact that the 2020 presidential election saw extremely high turnout, while the 2022 midterms — which are typically lower turnout across the U.S. — had far less interest.

"Our voter rolls were large... That’s why we ended up with so many people who were purged," Lee said.

Wyoming remains the least populated state in the U.S., though its population has seen a steady increase since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. Between 2022 and 2023, the state experienced natural growth, meaning the number of new babies born outpaced the number of deaths in the state. Wyoming also saw an influx of more than 2,000 new residents in 2023, partly due to remote work opportunities allowing Americans to relocate to more affordable communities.

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