American Oversight Sues for Records Related to Kentucky’s Ballot Integrity Task Force

On Tuesday, American Oversight sued Kentucky’s Office of the Attorney General for failing to release public records related to the Ballot Integrity Task Force, a newly launched partnership between state election officials and law enforcement aimed at investigating and deterring incidents of supposed “voter fraud.” 

In July, the watchdog group filed open records requests with the Kentucky attorney general for meeting notices, agendas and minutes, and reports created by the Ballot Integrity Task Force, as well as for emails sent by task force members containing key terms related to voter fraud. Today’s suit seeks to enforce these requests. 

This lawsuit is the latest in American Oversight’s investigation into the voter fraud task forces that have been launched in states across the country. Shaped after President Donald Trump’s Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity — which disbanded in 2018 after failing to find any credible evidence to support Trump’s accusations of widespread voter fraud — these groups have the potential to dissuade voters from participating in democracy. 

“Misinformation about voting by mail and voter fraud is pervasive and it discourages voters from exercising their right to vote,” said Austin Evers, executive director of American Oversight. “The public is entitled to see what these election administrators and law enforcement officials are doing behind the scenes.” 

American Oversight is using its open records expertise to investigate threats to democracy in Kentucky and across the country as part of its State Accountability Project. The watchdog is investigating voter suppression tactics, from voter fraud task forces to gerrymandering, in key states including Florida, Texas, Georgia, New Hampshire, and Wisconsin, among others. More information on this investigation, including documents and outstanding requests, is available here. The complaint is available here.