TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A key state senator is blocking a vote on Secretary of State Kris Kobach’s legislation requiring new Kansas voters to prove their U.S. citizenship ahead of this year’s presidential election.
Chairwoman Terrie Huntington said Friday she doesn’t plan to have her Senate Ethics and Elections Committee meet again this year. The committee had a hearing on Kobach’s bill Thursday but adjourned its last scheduled meeting of the year without acting.
Kansas has a law requiring people registering to vote for the first time in the state to provide proof of their citizenship, but it doesn’t take effect until January. Kobach wants to move up the effective date to June 15.
Kobach has said the panel could easily convene again, but Huntington said members don’t want another meeting.
