ANNAPOLIS, Md., June 22 (DC Times Online) — Maryland state election officials removed Ian Andre Roberts from the voter rolls on June 2, according to state records cited in recent reporting, turning the case into a fresh point of attack for Republican lawmakers who say the state moved too slowly.
Republican Del. Matt Morgan, who chairs the Maryland House Freedom Caucus, said the episode shows why “Marylanders have lost faith in our elections.” He said the delay in removing Roberts proves the system is broken.
State voter-registration records reviewed in the reporting show Roberts checked the citizenship box and signed under penalty of perjury twice on Maryland forms. Election records also indicate the state mailed absentee ballots to Roberts while he remained on the rolls for more than a decade.
Morgan said the case “practically took an act of God” to resolve, and he called for stronger safeguards and more transparency from election officials.
Maryland elections administrator Jared DeMarinis previously warned against “improper cancellation,” a reference to the risk of wrongly removing eligible voters from the rolls.
The Maryland Freedom Caucus has also pressed state and federal officials for more information about the case, and Rep. Bryan Steil, R-Wis., said the congressional investigation would continue. The reporting does not show whether Roberts cast a ballot in Maryland.