Alabama Secretary of State-elect Wes Allen has notified the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC) the state would withdraw from its system once he assumes office in January.
Delivering on a pledge he made to Alabamians on the campaign trail, Allen raised alarm over ERIC’s collection of sensitive voter data. The organization collects and stores voter information such as names, addresses and partial Social Security numbers in a centralized database.
ERIC was established with a grant provided by the Open Society Foundations, a global grantmaking network founded by billionaire financier George Soros which funds far-left political causes.
In a Wednesday news release, Allen declared that the Yellowhammer State would no longer hold a relationship in any fashion with ERIC.
“I made a promise that I would withdraw Alabama from ERIC and I am keeping that promise,” said Allen. “I have informed them, via certified letter, that upon my inauguration on January 16, 2023, Alabama will immediately and permanently cease to transmit any information regarding any citizen in the State of Alabama to their organization and that we will no longer participate in any aspect of the ERIC program.”
The organization was originally managed David Becker, a prominent Democrat election lawyer and former Obama administration-era U.S. Justice Department official.
Becker created the Center for Election Innovation and Research, which distributed millions of dollars donated by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to Democrat-majority counties during the 2020 election cycle.
“I have heard repeatedly as I travelled through the state for the last year and a half that people want us out of ERIC,” said Allen. “They don’t want their personal information or the personal information of their children to be sent to this out-of-state group.
“I promised I would end our participation and that is what I am taking these steps to do.”
In his letter to ERIC, Allen indicated he will mail another letter upon his inauguration on official government letterhead, officially ceasing Alabama’s participation with the corporation.
Alabama pays approximately $25,000 per year in membership fees to ERIC in addition to frequent transfers of sensitive data to their databases, according to Allen.
Dylan Smith is the editor of Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @DylanSmithAL
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