Kansas Senate rushes through elimination of mail processing period
Sb 4 would eliminate the 3-day window for mail ballot processing would disenfranchise thousands of rural, disabled, and elderly Kansas voters
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, February 4, 2024
CONTACT: Esmie Tseng, ACLU of Kansas, [email protected]
TOPEKA, KAN. – The Kansas Senate voted Tuesday to pass a bill eliminating the mail processing window for mail-in ballots, which would silence thousands of rural, disabled, and elderly Kansas voters. A hearing scheduled for this Thursday for the House to consider a duplicate measure, HB 2017, was removed from the calendar.
The ACLU of Kansas previously noted that the measure would severely weaken Kansans’ voices by punishing eligible Kansas voters for the processing logistics of the federal postal service. The bill ignores the reality that everyday Kansans understand: the mail takes time, especially in rural parts of the state.
“We call on every member of the Kansas House to be a voice for the voters who aren’t in the capitol building this week and stop this clear effort to silence Kansans,” said Micah Kubic, Executive Director of the ACLU of Kansas. “Lawmakers were not sent to the legislature by Kansas voters to attack the very democracy that got them there.”
Kansans can contact their lawmakers about SB 4 (HB 2017) here.
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About the ACLU of Kansas: The ACLU of Kansas is the statewide affiliate of the national American Civil Liberties Union. The ACLU of Kansas is dedicated to preserving and advancing the civil rights and legal freedoms guaranteed by the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights. For more information, visit our website at www.aclukansas.org.
