LAUDERDALE COUNTY, Ala. — Thanks to several voters who raised awareness of a glitch in the voter registration database, Lauderdale County Republicans living in House District 2 who didn’t get to vote for their next representative in May’s primary election will now have an opportunity to vote in tomorrow’s run-off election between Jason Black and Ben Harrison.
More than 70 registered voters in Lauderdale County voted in the wrong district in May because the voter registration system incorrectly assigned them to House District 1. Voters who live on the following streets were affected:
Florence Lexington
Bentbrook Drive County Road 159
Johnson Drive
Oakbrook Drive
Shadybrook Drive
“These voters actually live in House District 2, according to the official maps of the Permanent Legislative Committee on Reapportionment,” said Bryan Taylor, an attorney and former state senator who represents some of the affected voters. “The legislature redrew district lines as constitutionally required after the last census. But somehow, the update never made it into the voter registration database.” The glitch is still being investigated, Taylor said.
Lauderdale County Probate Judge Will Motlow had an idea to correct the problem. Wanting all the voters of House District 2 to be able to participate in the run-off to elect their next representative in Montgomery, he personally delivered the correct ballots to the affected polling places earlier today. But because of time constraints, the affected voters will still need to request a provisional ballot in order to vote in the House District 2 run-off election. “Just the voters on these streets who are incorrectly registered in House District 1 should request a provisional ballot for the District 2 race,” Taylor said.
Only 14 votes separated the second- and third-place finishers in the May 24 Primary for House of Representatives District 2. As a result, Jason Black advanced to the run-off instead of Kimberly Butler. An election contest is pending before the Republican State Executive Committee to determine whether Butler would have made the run-off if these voters had been registered in the correct district.
Letter to The Honorable Judge Motlow
Dear Judge Motlow:
Thank you for making sure my clients, several Lauderdale County Republican Primary voters who live in House District 2 (HD2), will have an opportunity to vote in tomorrow’s HD2 Republican run-off election, even though their voter registration records incorrectly list them as residents of HD1.
As we discussed, the Permanent Legislative Committee on Reapportionment has confirmed that voters who live on the following streets actually live in House District 2:
Florence
Bentbrook Drive
Johnson Drive
Oakbrook Drive
Shadybrook Drive
Lexington
County Road 159
Thanks to your efforts and assurances, I understand that Republican voters on these streets will be able to request provisional ballots to vote in HD2 at their polling place tomorrow.
Thank you again for your unwavering commitment to the integrity of our elections!
Sincerely,
Bryan M. Taylor