Pennsylvania State Senators Propose Withdrawal from Multi-State Voter-Data System

…Matthew Germer, a fellow at the center-right R Street Institute told The Pennsylvania Daily Star he believes ERIC advances voter-roll integrity in member states. He observed that the system has enjoyed bipartisan support in the past and only recently has become controversial. 

“As a conservative…, I want a system that is led by the states, that is a voluntary opt-in thing not run by Uncle Sam where the states participate, they share information, they’re able to see if there are any duplicates or holes in their voter data and address those,” he said. “And that’s largely what ERIC was designed to do. And so, from that spirit, I think it’s exactly what Republicans and conservatives like me should be supporting and actually for a long time did, really up until just these last few months as things kind of changed.” 

Germer characterized ERIC’s requirement that states reach out to qualified voters who moved in from other states as “just good government [and] good customer service to taxpayers.” He added that while states can themselves use Postal Service and Social Security data to check registration records for errors, he considers ERIC membership an additional tool for states to improve their systems’ integrity. Another benefit to participation, he said, is that the program is inexpensive to join. 

Responding to Dush’s suggestion that states that have stayed out of ERIC have maintained more accurate voter rolls, Germer noted that two of those states are New York and California — not renowned as models of election administration. He observed that those states are now considering joining the program.