Kansas attorney general Derek Schmidt says the Legislature should repeal the authority of the secretary of the state to prosecute criminal cases of voter fraud.
Secretary of state Kris Kobach lobbied for the authority to prosecute cases and that was granted by lawmakers in 2015. Schmidt has announced proposed legislation to repeal that authority and allow the attorney general and local prosecutors to handle voter fraud cases.
Schmidt said his office now has a Fraud and Abuse Litigation Division that has the capacity to handle the relatively small number of voter fraud prosecutions. He said it will be more efficient for that division to handle voter fraud cases along with other fraud and abuse cases.
Newly-elected secretary of state Scott Schwab said he supports Schmidt’s recommendation and he sees nothing that raises any concerns. Schmidt and Schwab said they will work together to ensure that any voter fraud cases get the appropriate attention from the attorney general’s office or from local county and district attorneys. 
