Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C. Per the office of Secretary of State, on the 15th of February, 2023. Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen made an unannounced visit to the home address for headquarters of Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC) at 1201 Connecticut Ave NW Ste 600 in Washington, DC. After arriving at this address Allen realized that this site was actually home of virtual workspaces and also that no ERIC headquarters were located at the address.
“I I was at DC for a conference with the National Association of Secretaries of States and, as I was there, I visited the ERIC headquarters,” Allen explained. “What I discovered is that I did not find an ERIC headquarters at the address. No employees were there. The servers weren’t there. The site was empty. ERIC presence at all. Instead, I discovered an online office accessible for lease by the day. The only thing it didn’t have was servers, personnel, and any indication from any sign of the ERIC staff.”
Despite putting this Connecticut Avenue address as its official address on its website, the address is actually run by Expansive which provides virtual workspaces across the United States and lets space per day.
“Before the time I was elected, Alabama transmitted the personal information of millions of our citizens to this private company for several years. This data is kept on a computer however we aren’t sure exactly where it is. There isn’t an ERIC office at the address they claim to have its office.” Allen said. “A large amount of personal information and taxpayer funds have been transfer to ERIC. Where are the information? What are their employees’ locations? Which offices are there? Are there computers?”
Allen was a member of his time in the Alabama House of Representatives and as the Probate Judge in Pike County prior to being elected Secretary of State. Security for elections has always been a top concern for Allen, both as the top official of elections within Pike County and as a legislator. Since his appointment the legislator has been working with state agencies to develop ways to ensure that the voter lists in Alabama are correct and clean.
Allen was elected secretary of state for Alabama in the month of November. He took office in the month of January. The decision to withdraw Alabama out of ERIC was his first action during his tenure as Secretary of States. The process of withdrawal is officially 90 days, which means Alabama is expected to be officially removed in mid-April. Allen has stopped transmitting information in Alabama for ERIC.
