Kim Wyman using ‘typical Republican trick,’ opponent says

Cascade Mall shooting suspect Arcan Cetin highlighted a loophole in Washington’s voting process, according to Washington Secretary of State Kim Wyman.

“What came to light to the general public is the fact that election officials cannot verify a person’s citizenship status as part of voter registration,” Wyman said. “That affects county auditors, elections directors as well as for people in my office.”

It turns out that Cetin is a naturalized U.S. citizen with the right to vote. Authorities initially said Cetin was a permanent resident, but later confirmed he is a citizen.

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The issue is that a person does not have to prove citizenship to get an ID in Washington. According to Wyman, Washington is one of three states that has this loophole. It’s a federal standard that the state doesn’t adhere to. It not only deals with voter fraud, but it is also at the core of why federal authorities have threatened not to allow people on airplanes with merely a Washington ID.

Wyman is crafting a proposal aimed at solving the issue in a couple of steps.

“The Legislature enacting real ID, which is the federal requirements to prove citizenship at the time of licensing,” Wyman said. “If we do that, we can have a list of US citizens that we can work from. That would lead to the second part of the proposal where those people are verified; we would automatically register them (to vote).”

Podlodowski: This is not about voter fraud

Wyman’s opponent, Democrat Tina Podlodowski, says that the timing of the Republican’s ID reform announcement is convenient, and she finds it offensive.

“I’m appalled by what she did,” Podlodowski said. “Secretary Wyman is showing her true partisan, Republican colors in an effort to score political points. Just like Donald Trump, she is intentionally flaming anti-immigrant sentiment by suggesting non-citizens are trying to vote here in Washington state. As a daughter of immigrants, I’m appalled by what she did.”

Podlodowski argues that the issue of ID, driver licenses in Washington, and voter fraud is a bi-partisan issue that lawmakers have been discussing for years. She contends that Wyman has been absent during those discussions.

“It’s old news in terms of making it happen,” she said. “This is not about real ID, it’s about Wyman trying to score political points.”

“To have Kim Wyman bring this up on the heels of this tragic shooting, and to score political points off of immigrants in this state, I am appalled,” Podlodowski said. “This is a typical Republican trick.”

Podlodowksi doesn’t want to change the license system in Washington.

“We have a system where you don’t have to be a citizen to get a drivers license,” she said. “That’s something that I want to make sure we keep. It’s incredibly important for non-citizens to be able to get a drivers license and insurance.”

Wyman said that her office is trying to be “thoughtful” moving forward with her proposal. She said that she doesn’t want to disenfranchise people, and also she doesn’t want to weaken security.

“Well, people on the left side of the aisle will talk about voter suppression, and people on the right side will talk about voter fraud,” Wyman said. “We balance our security and access pretty well here and you don’t hear of instances where people are disenfranchised here. On the other side, we have a secure system we want people to have confidence in.”

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