CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine Marshall should resign after issuing more than 320 notary public commissions over nine years to people who live in the U.S. illegally, a state lawmaker said Tuesday.
Pender County Republican Rep. Chris Millis made the demand in a statement in which said that he sent a letter to Marshall’s office. In the statement, Mills accuses Marshall of issuing commissions to people holding DACA cards. Among the 320, Mills said, is one person facing deportation.
The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy was started by the Obama administration in 2012. It allows certain immigrants who entered the U.S. illegally as minors to receive a renewable two-year period of deferred action from deportation and eligibility for a work permit.
Millis said state law requires that notaries meet a variety of requirements, including legal residence in the U.S. He said documents obtained from Marshall showed that her office routinely accepted a DACA card in lieu of a green card as proof of legal residency.
Notaries public witness the signing of important documents, such as property deeds, wills and powers of attorney to confirm the signer’s true identity.
Marshall issued a response which dismissed Millis’ charges.
“This is simply a rehashing of the political attack used by my opponent in the recent election,” her statement said. “The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has authorized the specifically mentioned notaries to work here lawfully. That federally authorized status continues to be unchanged by the new presidential administration.”
Millis also alleged Marshall failed to tell the truth when questioned on the issue during a televised debate last October. The legislator also accused Deputy Secretary of State Haley Hanes misled legislators at a December presentation to a joint legislative oversight committee.
“Her repeated deception in this matter and her office’s attempt to cover up these actions from both the public and the press compound the Secretary’s malfeasance,” Millis said. “These troubling revelations should be a sufficient basis for her to resign her office, or, should she refuse, provide grounds for the legislature to demand her impeachment.”
Millis cited a story in the North State Journal last September which reported Marshall’s office may have commissioned immigrants living in the country illegally as notaries public. In response, Millis requested information for Marshall’s office and received more than 1,700 pages of documents leading to his call for the resignation. He has also filed House Bill 392 to clarify state law in regard to legal residence.
Millis also made a reference in his statement to the possibility of voter fraud because notaries public can witness a voter fill out an absentee ballot in North Carolina.
In responding to Marshall’s statement, Millis said even if immigrants placed within the DACA category are deemed immigrants lawfully in the country, there’s still evidence more than 70 other immigrants not considered permanent residents in the country received notary commissions.
Millis said his call for Marshall’s resignation is not politically motivated, pointing out Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper would appoint the person to fill out Marshall’s term.
“It’s definitely not politically motivated,” he said. “It’s totally a matter of principle. The letter that I sent stands on its own.”
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