DMV gets subpoena too in federal voting query

The state Division of Motor Vehicles also got a subpoena in the ongoing federal inquiry of North Carolina voting records, with investigators requesting eight years worth of voter registration applications in any language other than English.

Posted 9:44 p.m. Sep 10, 2018 — Updated 9:55 p.m. Sep 10, 2018

Travis Fain

, WRAL statehouse reporter

RALEIGH, N.C. — The state Division of Motor Vehicles also got a subpoena in the ongoing federal inquiry of North Carolina voting records, with investigators requesting eight years worth of voter registration applications in any language other than English.

The subpoena bears the same date as similar demands that went to the State Board of Elections and Ethics Enforcement and local elections officials in 44 eastern counties: Aug. 31, the Friday before Labor Day.

The state elections board voted Friday to fight that series of subpoenas, which initially asked for voting records that could have allowed investigators to determine how individuals voted, but was dialed back.

A DMV spokeswoman said Monday that the division's legal counsel is reviewing the subpoena, which seeks voter registration applications from non-citizens.

The subpoenas came from United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina Robert Higdon's office, and they tie back to a grand jury meeting in Wilmington, as well as a U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agent with an office in Cary. Neither agency has commented publicly on the reason for the subpoenas, but last month, at least some of the investigators involved were also involved in charging 19 people with voting in the 2016 election despite not being citizens.

The DMV subpoena seeks voter registration applications and supporting documents going back to January 2010 that were either:

From an applicant born outside of the United States
From an applicant without a Social Security card or driver's license
From an applicant who indicated he or she wasn't a citizen
Filed using a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services employment authorization card, lawful permanent resident card or other documents that indicate the applicant wasn't a U.S. citizen.
Filed using a foreign passport or other foreign identity document
Denied or otherwise found to be "fraudulent, incorrectly filed, ineligible, or were found to have other irregularities"
Completed in a language other than English

The documents are due by Sept. 25, the subpoena states. That was initially the due date for state and county election offices, but federal investigators agreed last week to relax that deadline after election officials said it would be difficult to prepare for the November elections while also pulling the millions of documents covered by the subpoenas.

The New York Times was the first to report the existence of the DMV subpoena.

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