New Hampshire AG Accuses DNC of Violating Voter Suppression Law

CONCORD, N.H. — New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella issued a cease-and-desist order to the Democratic National Committee on Monday, accusing the party of engaging in voter suppression.

Formella’s action is the latest salvo in an ongoing row between the state and the party over the DNC’s decision to void New Hampshire’s long-standing first-in-the-nation primary status and place South Carolina at the head of the pack.

Despite the DNC’s edit, New Hampshire Secretary of State David Scanlan scheduled the state’s primary for Jan. 23, a week before South Carolina’s Feb. 3 Democratic showdown.

In doing so, Scanlan said he was obligated by state law to keep New Hampshire voting first.

The DNC responded by immediately saying the New Hampshire Democratic Party’s plan to abide by the state mandate rendered its contest “noncompliant” and warned that it faced serious sanctions, including having its delegation reduced in size by 50% ahead of the party’s nominating convention.

On Jan. 5, Minyon Moore and James Roosevelt Jr., co-chairs of the DNC’s Rules and Bylaws Committee, sent a letter to New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Raymond Buckley reminding him of the noncompliance issue, which they said could “disenfranchise and confuse voters.”

They also referred to an earlier discussion they had in which they told Buckley:

• The event on Jan. 23 cannot be used as the first determining stage of the state’s delegate selection process and is considered detrimental.
• The NHDP must take steps to educate the public that Jan. 23 is a non-binding presidential preference event and is meaningless, and the NHDP and presidential candidates should take all steps possible not to participate.
• No delegates or alternates shall be apportioned based on the results of the Jan. 23 event.
• No scheduling of events related to the selection of delegates or alternates in New Hampshire may be based on the Jan. 23 event.

They added that they were aware the New Hampshire committee planned to go ahead with a delegation selection process, and advised Buckley to inform participants that this process has not been approved by the DNC and is therefore not the approved route to become a delegate to the National Convention.

In his cease-and-desist order, Formella informed Moore and Roosevelt that “regardless of whether the DNC refuses to award delegates to the party’s national convention based on the results of the Jan. 23, New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary election, this New Hampshire election is not ‘meaningless.’”  

He went on to call their statements to the contrary “false, deceptive and misleading.”  

“Telling any person qualified to register to vote … in New Hampshire that the Jan. 23, 2024, New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary election is ‘meaningless,’ or soliciting NHDP or any other party to make such statements, constitutes an attempt to prevent or deter New Hampshire voters from participating in the Jan. 23, 2024, New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary election, in violation of RSA 659:40, III,” Formella wrote.

SA 659:40, III provides that:

No person shall engage in voter suppression by knowingly attempting to prevent or deter another person from voting or registering to vote based on fraudulent, deceptive, misleading, or spurious grounds or information.

Prohibited acts of voter suppression include:

(a) Challenging another person’s right to register to vote or vote based on information that he or she knows to be false or misleading.
(b) Attempting to induce another person to refrain from registering to vote or from voting by providing that person with information that he or she knows to be false or misleading.
(c) Attempting to induce another person to refrain from registering to vote or from voting at the proper place or time by providing information that he or she knows to be false or misleading about the date, time, place, or manner of the election.

Formella ordered the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee to immediately cease and desist from engaging in any voter suppression or violating any other state election law, “including but not limited to repeating false, deceptive or misleading statements that the Jan. 23, 2024, New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary election is ‘meaningless.’”

Formella did not say what sanctions his office would seek against the party for further alleged violations of the state election law, but said his review of the matter remains open.

Meanwhile the grassroots Write-In Biden campaign reacted to the attorney general’s letter by issuing a statement saying it “is all about enfranchising New Hampshire voters and helping ensure Joe Biden is re-elected President in 2024.

“We are proud of the hundreds of grassroots volunteers across this state who have joined this campaign, along with the leadership of our Congressional delegation and Democratic leaders from across the country who are standing with our campaign to support Joe Biden and oppose MAGA authoritarianism,” the continued.

Dan can be reached at [email protected] and @DanMcCue