Niagara County lawmakers voted Tuesday to authorize potential legal action against New York state over a law county officials argue is interfering with a federal investigation into possible noncitizen voting.
The resolution passed 9-4, with all Republicans voting in favor and all Democrats opposed. Two legislators were absent.
The vote gives County Attorney Claude Joerg authorization to pursue litigation challenging a law signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul in May that restricts local governments from sharing certain personal information with federal immigration authorities.
In an exclusive interview with Spectrum News 1, Joerg said federal immigration investigators are looking into eight people who he says have voted in Niagara County elections.
“We’ve got eight individuals that the immigration is looking at right now regarding this issue,” Joerg said.
Joerg said federal authorities have requested records involving people who have voted in local elections. However, when asked whether any cases of illegal voting had been confirmed, he could not say.
Spectrum News 1 also contacted Niagara County’s two election commissioners, one Republican and one Democrat, who confirmed that representatives from the Department of Homeland Security had visited their office seeking voter information.
“We can confirm that representatives from the Department of Homeland Security have visited our office seeking information related to active registered voters and voting history. This inquiry is part of an ongoing investigation,” the commissioners said in a joint statement.
The commissioners said they could not discuss specific details or questions surrounding suspected noncitizen voting while the investigation remains active.
Disagreement over state law
At the center of the dispute is New York General Municipal Law Section 996-a, which restricts the disclosure of certain personal information to federal immigration authorities.
Joerg argues the law puts county officials in a difficult position when responding to requests from federal investigators.
“So basically what’s occurring is they’re putting the county in a terrible position because we want to ensure that only citizens vote because until they amend the Constitution, that’s all that’s entitled to vote our citizens,” Joerg said.
But the law also includes exceptions for voter registration and other election-related matters.
When Spectrum News 1 questioned Joerg about those exceptions, he said he believes the restrictions still prevent the county from providing certain identifying information.
“The way I read it is if a immigration officer comes in and asks for records, they can’t get records they have people’s identification on. That would be their name, their addresses, dates of birth, all those things,” Joerg said.
Immigration attorney Lauren DesRosiers disputes that interpretation and questions whether the county has grounds for a successful legal challenge.
“Under the 996 a, which is the statute that Niagara is looking to challenge, election law and voter registration is specifically exempted. So it doesn’t really have legs here as far as the lawsuit goes,” DesRosiers said.
The disagreement raises questions about how the law’s election-related exceptions apply to the specific information federal authorities are requesting.
Immigration debate enters governor’s race
The dispute comes less than two weeks before New York’s midterm elections, with immigration enforcement emerging as a major issue in the race for governor.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman has advocated greater cooperation between local law enforcement agencies and federal immigration authorities. Hochul, a Democrat seeking reelection, has supported restrictions on certain forms of that cooperation.
Joerg, however, maintains the county’s concern is election integrity rather than the broader immigration debate.
“This particular case is all about election integrity because one voter’s that important so that we can maintain integrity of our voting rolls,” Joerg said.
Tuesday’s vote authorizes the county attorney to pursue legal action but does not mean a lawsuit has been filed.
Joerg told Spectrum News 1 before the vote that he would prefer to resolve the dispute without litigation.
Spectrum News 1 requested comment from Hochul’s office and New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office. Neither had responded by the reporting deadline.