Columbia, South Carolina – A South Carolina judge heard arguments over whether Governor Henry McMaster can legitimately intervene in a lawsuit involving the release of voter information to the US Department of Justice (DOJ).
The DOJ has requested information on South Carolina’s 3.3 million registered voters, including full driver’s license numbers and the last four digits of Social Security numbers. Dr. Anne Crook, a South Carolina voter, filed a lawsuit to prevent the dissemination, alleging probable violations of state law.
Initially, a circuit judge stopped the data transfer. However, the South Carolina Supreme Court later permitted McMaster to intervene, lifting the temporary stay on disclosing the information.
On Wednesday, attorneys discussed the governor’s legal standing in the case. Crook’s lawyer, State Senate Minority Leader Brad Hutto, contended that enabling McMaster to intercede undermines the State Election Commission’s independence.
“The governor seeks to, in essence, bigfoot the Election Commission because he can’t control them,” Hutto told the press. “He cannot replace the board if he disagrees with them. They are appointed for a period of four years. Allowing the governor in would violate the Election Commission’s integrity and independence.
Grayson Lambert, McMaster’s legal counsel, argued that the governor is only upholding state law and is not involved in the commission’s conversations with the DOJ.
“This is not about bigfooting the Election Commission. “This is about defending state law,” Lambert explained. “The governor is not interfering in the commission’s conversations with the DOJ. “The governor had no involvement in that.”
The judge is likely to rule on McMaster’s involvement by tomorrow.
A full hearing on the case is scheduled for Friday, 2 p.m. in Columbia.
