Iowa’s secretary of state blasted Ted Cruz’s campaign over a controversial mailer that aims to drive voters to the polls for Monday’s caucuses by claiming they have committed “violations.”
An official-looking mailer from presidential candidate Ted Cruz resorted to a misleading form of junk mail which used apparently misleading figures to shame voters in going to the polls.
At the top of each Cruz mailer, in a bold red box, were the alerting words “VOTING VIOLATION.” On careful examination, the flyer was clearly from Cruz’s campaign.
Details followed …
‘You are receiving this election notice because of low expected voter turnout in your area. Your individual voting history as well as your neighbors’ are public record. Their scores are published below, and many of them will see your score as well. CAUCUS ON MONDAY TO IMPROVE YOUR SCORE and please encourage your neighbors to caucus as well. A follow-up notice may be issued following Monday’s caucuses.’
Further down a chart showing the names of the recipient of the mailing and her or his neighbors alongside their respective letter “grade” and “score.”
The mailer clearly stated that voter registration and voter history records are public records distributed by the Iowa Secretary of State and/or county election clerks.
But the figures were apparently misleading.
“Today I was shown a piece of literature from the Cruz for President campaign that misrepresents the role of my office, and worse, misrepresents Iowa election law. Accusing citizens of Iowa of a ‘voting violation’ based on Iowa Caucus participation, or lack thereof, is false representation of an official act. There is no such thing as an election violation related to frequency of voting. Any insinuation or statement to the contrary is wrong and I believe it is not in keeping in the spirit of the Iowa Caucuses.
“Additionally, the Iowa Secretary of State’s Office never ‘grades’ voters. Nor does the Secretary of State maintain records related to Iowa Caucus participation. Caucuses are organized and directed by the state political parties, not the Secretary of State, nor local elections officials. Also, the Iowa Secretary of State does not ‘distribute’ voter records. They are available for purchase for political purposes only, under Iowa Code.”
— Paul Pate, Iowa Secretary of State
Statement from Secretary of State Paul Pate Regarding Misleading Mailer from Cruz for President CampaignDES MOINES – "…
Posted by Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate on Saturday, January 30, 2016
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