Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Over Voters’ Birthdates

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A Texas-based group, True the Vote, will not appeal its loss in a lawsuit that sought access to Mississippi voters’ birthdates after a disputed Republican primary for U.S. Senate.

U.S. District Judge Nancy Atlas filed an order Tuesday dismissing the lawsuit filed by True the Vote and several Mississippi residents.

The dismissal came more than a month after Atlas ruled against the plaintiffs. She said disclosing voters’ birthdates “raises serious concerns” about privacy, particularly if dates were released with full names and addresses.

After a tea party-backed candidate, state Sen. Chris McDaniel, lost a June 24 Republican primary runoff to Sen. Thad Cochran, McDaniel supporters searched voting records to look for irregularities. They said they needed to see birthdates so they could verify identities of different voters with similar names.