Louisiana Rejects Trump Commission Request For Voter Data

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Louisiana won't give President Donald Trump's voting commission the voter identification information it requested.

Secretary of State Tom Schedler announced his decision Monday. In a statement, Schedler says he believes voters' private information — including Social Security numbers, birth dates and mother's maiden name — should be kept private and should be protected by the state.

Schedler, a Republican, says he believes the Trump commission's request is politically motivated. He described the effort as a "federal intrusion and overreach."

He says the commission can buy the limited public information available under the law to anyone. That includes names, addresses, party registrations and voter histories — whether people voted, not how they voted.

Several states, including neighboring Mississippi, have refused to comply with the voter information request, citing privacy concerns.

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