Key Votes

This bill makes it a criminal misdemeanor to operate a voter registration website without a .gov domain or personal approval from the Secretary of State — directly threatening the online voter registration drives that unions and civic organizations routinely run for their members. It also requires state agencies to report personal information of noncitizen public assistance recipients to the Secretary of State, creating a chilling effect on benefit access for immigrant workers in meatpacking, food processing, and other union-represented industries. The Legislature voted to override the Governor's veto and enact the bill into law.

This bill makes it a criminal misdemeanor to operate a voter registration website that doesn't have a .gov domain or personal approval from the Secretary of State — directly threatening the online voter registration tools unions use to sign up members. It also creates a new government database tracking noncitizen public assistance recipients, which could discourage immigrant workers in meatpacking and other union industries from accessing benefits they're entitled to. The legislature voted to override the Governor's veto, locking these restrictions into law.

This bill makes it a criminal misdemeanor to operate a voter registration website without a .gov domain or personal approval from the Secretary of State. Unions and civic organizations that help members register to vote through their own websites or third-party platforms like Vote.org would face criminal penalties. The bill also creates a government database of noncitizen public assistance recipients and requires cross-checking voter rolls against a federal database known for flagging naturalized citizens by mistake.

HB 2503 repeals the Kansas Mail Ballot Election Act, eliminating the option for local governments to conduct special elections — like school bonds, annexations, and water district questions — by mail. These are the very elections that determine funding for public services and infrastructure where union members work. Ending mail ballots for these elections creates real barriers for workers on rotating shifts, overnight schedules, or 12-hour days who can't easily get to a polling place on a Tuesday.

This bill requires the Secretary of State to check voter registration rolls against a federal immigration database (SAVE) twice a year and remove voters flagged as potential non-citizens. Voter purge programs like this have a well-documented history of incorrectly flagging eligible citizens — particularly naturalized citizens, working-class voters, and communities of color — leading to wrongful removal from the rolls. Labor opposes this bill because it creates unnecessary barriers to voting for the very working families and union members who depend on their voice at the ballot box.

HB 2453 cuts off in-person advance voting before election week, moves the voter registration deadline to 25 days before the election, and requires mail ballot applications 14 days earlier. These restrictions hit shift workers, hourly employees, and newly organized members hardest — the very people who rely on weekend voting and late registration because their work schedules don't allow flexibility. The bill also compresses the window unions use for worksite voter registration drives ahead of elections.

This bill requires any website used for voter registration to either have a .gov domain or get pre-approval from the Secretary of State, with violations carrying criminal misdemeanor charges. Unions and community organizations that run voter registration drives could be shut out of online registration if the Secretary of State denies or delays approval — and the bill includes no timeline, appeal process, or objective standards for those decisions. The result is a new layer of government gatekeeping over civic engagement tools that labor and allied organizations rely on to register working people to vote.