55,000 illegal entries scrubbed from database

OLYMPIA – Some 55,000 illegal registrations have been scrubbed from the new statewide voter database, Secretary of State Sam Reed said today.

That is the largest number of erroneous voter records found since the database began running at the beginning of the year.

The total includes 35,445 duplicate records and 19,579 entries for dead people. But Reed said he suspects that very few people voted twice.

"In most cases, people moved and simply forgot to notify their local elections offices," he said in a statement.

The database was released publicly in February. It contains all the state's nearly 3.8 million voters — including more than 400,000 inactive voters. It is the first consolidated list of registered voters from the state's 39 counties.

State officials are still screening records for felons who have not legally restored their right to vote.

State Attorney General Rob McKenna is appealing a King County judge's ruling that restored voting rights to felons who have served their time but still owe court-imposed fines.

The state's database, paid for with federal money, replaced 39 separate county lists and was developed by software experts from the state and Microsoft Corp.

The system brings the state into compliance with the 2002 federal Help America Vote Act, which required better voting systems, improved voter access and statewide voter registration lists.

The legislation was passed by Congress two years after the controversial 2000 election exposed numerous problems with voting systems across the country.