AG Wilson joins push to allow Trump election executive order to take effect

South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson has joined 11 other attorneys general in asking the U.S. Supreme Court to stay a federal court injunction blocking President Trump’s executive order aimed at ensuring only U.S. citizens vote in federal elections, according to a news release from Wilson’s office.

The executive order directs federal agencies to develop lists of potentially lawful voters in each state and transmit them to state election officials, who would retain the option of whether to use them. It also directs the U.S. Attorney General to prioritize enforcement of federal laws prohibiting ballots from being issued to ineligible voters, and instructs the U.S. Postal Service to consider reforms to strengthen mail-in ballot security, according to Wilson’s office.

“It’s already against the law for non-citizens to vote in federal elections, so it’s hard to understand why there’s opposition to President Trump’s executive order to help states make sure the law is followed,” Wilson said.

Wilson argues the states that sued to block the order lack standing because it imposes no direct obligation on any state, and that an injunction is premature because many of the order’s provisions have not yet been finalized, according to the release.

Federal courts have repeatedly blocked key provisions of the order. A federal judge in Massachusetts found that the Constitution does not grant the president specific powers over elections, ruling that authority belongs to states and Congress.

New York Attorney General Letitia James, who led one of the opposing coalitions, called the ruling a victory for voters. “Generations of Americans fought tirelessly for the right to vote, and we honor their legacy by protecting that right against anyone who tries to undermine it,” James said in a June 24 press release from her office. “I am grateful the court blocked the president’s unconstitutional attempt to seize control of our elections.”

Joining Wilson in the Supreme Court application are the attorneys general of Alabama, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Texas.