The 2022 and 2024 voter-registration challenges for 18th Legislative District candidate John Ley have been in the spotlight in recent months, but it’s certainly not the only voter-registration challenge the county has received.
In 2023 and 2024, the county received more than 100 registration challenges. Most were filed by Marilyn Roggenkamp, who serves as an elections observer, and Lauren Colas. Both are Camas residents. Vancouver resident Sharon Long filed a handful of challenges as well.
County Auditor Greg Kimsey said the distrust in the security and integrity of U.S. elections that has been on the rise since 2020 is being felt at the local level. He said it’s not just the outcome of elections that voters are questioning. The voter-registration process and voter database have come under fire as well.
“From 1999 through the end of 2021, I think there had been less than five voter-registration challenges filed in that entire time period,” Kimsey said.
Ley’s voter registration was successfully challenged in 2022 when he was running for the 18th District House of Representatives seat. Ley claimed to be renting a room in the Battle Ground area for $1 a month, but his registration was ruled invalid after he couldn’t confirm he actually lived there and not at the Camas house he owns. That home is not in the 18th District, but the Battle Ground address is. A court eventually ruled Ley was ineligible to run for the state House. He is now facing criminal charges related to that run for office and voter-registration information.
Ley’s registration was again challenged when he filed to run for the same seat in 2024, but it was dismissed by Kimsey following an Oct. 10 hearing. Ley now says he lives in a Hazel Dell apartment.
Kimsey said that as with the Ley challenges, it can be difficult to prove or disprove a voter’s residency.
“There’s really no limit to the situations that someone might find themselves in where they’re entitled to be registered to vote in Clark County, but they are currently sleeping someplace different,” Kimsey said.
Individuals serving in the military, students attending college, retirees traveling abroad, and those with jobs that require extensive or lengthy travel are just some examples of why someone may not appear to be living in Clark County but are eligible to receive a ballot, Kimsey said.
Voters can also maintain residency if they are absent due to prison or if they are registered at a non-traditional address such as a shelter, park or marina.
Many of the voter-registration challenges were ultimately dismissed due to a lack of evidence, or the voter updated their information or confirmed their address, among other reasons. But about 20 challenges were upheld, and the voters were made inactive in the database.
“The voter-registration challenges have definitely resulted in a more accurate voter-registration database,” Kimsey said.
Challenging a voter’s registration takes more than just signing and submitting a form. About 10 of the challenges filed in Clark County were dismissed because the challenger failed to provide direct evidence. By state law, registration challenges must be based on the challenger’s personal knowledge and not allegations by third parties.
The person challenging a voter registration is required to provide evidence that they sent a letter with “return service requested” to all known addresses for the voter; searched local telephone directories to determine whether the voter is listed at any address in the county; searched county property records to determine whether the voter owns property in the county; and searched the statewide voter-registration database to determine if the voter is registered at any other address in the state. If the voter has moved to another state, the challenger may be required to search the voter-registration database for that state as well.
“I would encourage anyone who is considering filing a voter-registration challenge to familiarize themselves with relevant laws,” Kimsey said.
For more information, go to sos.wa.gov/elections/administrators/forms-templates/voter-registration-challenges.
