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00000179-cdc6-d978-adfd-cfc6d7d40002Coverage of the issues, races and people shaping Kansas elections in 2016, including statewide coverage in partnership with KCUR, Kansas Public Radio, and High Plains Public Radio.

Federal Court Upholds Ruling Against Kansas Voter Citizenship Law

Bloomsberries, flickr Creative Commons

A U.S. appeals court has ruled that thousands of suspended voters in Kansas who used motor vehicles offices to register to vote must be allowed to cast a ballot in federal elections.

The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of appeals has upheld a ruling that requiring proof of citizenship when applying or renewing a driver's license in Kansas violates the National Voter Registration Act, often called the “Motor Voter Act.”

The original ruling was made by a U.S. District Judge in Kansas City last month. It means that roughly 18,000 suspended voters who used a DMV to register and didn’t provide a birth certificate or passport must be allowed to vote in federal elections in November. They will still be barred from voting in state and local elections.

Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach has led efforts to require proof of citizenship for several years. He believes it prevents voter fraud.

Kansas has some of the toughest proof of citizenship laws in the country.