Wolf rejects Trump election commission request — again

Gov. Tom Wolf is still not giving a White House commission the info it wants about Pennsylvania voters.

On Friday, the governor told Kris Kobach — Kansas secretary of state and vice chairman of Donald Trump’s Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity — that he will not be turning over requested registration information.

Kobach first requested the data in June, when he asked for things as detailed as birthdays and driver’s license numbers, even partial Social Security numbers, according to Wolf’s office.

“The commonwealth did not provide the information then and my position has not changed,” Wolf wrote in a letter to Kobach.

Kobach’s new letter was not available, but the state published the governor’s response.

“Your updated letter does not satisfy my serious concerns that the real intention of the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity is to pursue restrictions on the rights of Pennsylvanians to vote,” Wolf wrote.

According to the Americal Civil Liberties Union, Wolf is not alone.

The ACLU lists 18 states — including Kansas — complying with the request, but only providing publicly available information. Pennsylvania and 27 others say they will not comply at all. Idaho is reviewing the request, and Hawaii, Montana and West Virginia said they didn’t receive it.

“I will not participate in a process that seeks to restrict the fundamental right of citizens to vote or questions the integrity of the commonwealth’s voting system and by extension the elections officials and thousands of volunteers at polling places who make our elections possible,” Wolf wrote.

Wolf did invite Kobach to obtain the publicly available information if he would like it. It costs $20 and Wolf cautioned him that it can only be used in accordance with state law.

This story was originally published July 28, 2017 at 5:26 PM with the headline "Wolf rejects Trump election commission request — again."