HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – The American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia (“ACLU-WV”) is pleased to announce that the Honorable Judge Robert C. Chambers of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District in West Virginia today granted the ACLU-WV’s motion for a temporary restraining order and ordered that Cabell County Clerk Karen Cole register everyone who used the online voter registration system.
The ACLU-WV along with the ACLU National Voting Rights Project and Charleston-based attorney, Anthony Majestro, filed a class action lawsuit on October 20, 2016 against Cabell County Clerk Karen Cole for refusing to recognize and permit online voter registration within the county.
Below are quotes from the ACLU-WV Legal Director, Jamie Lynn Croft and the cooperating attorney, Anthony Majestro:
"We are pleased that, through the actions of the court's decision, 2,000 Cabell County residents will be able to vote on November 8. The court's decision clarifies that the Secretary of State's convenient online voter registration system must be used by the county clerks in all 55 counties, making it easier for all of our state's citizens to exercise their fundamental right to vote." - Charleston-based cooperating attorney, Anthony Majestro
"As I said when we filed the case, voting is a fundamental right at the heart of our democracy. Today, Judge Chambers affirmed that all citizens in the state should be treated equally when it comes to fundamental rights, and that the fundamental right to vote can never be taken away on the whim of a government official." - ACLU of WV Legal Director, Jamie Lynn Crofts
