Lawsuit: Kansas altered software to hide election records

BELLE PLAINE, Kan. (AP) — A judge is considering whether Kansas’ Republican secretary of state ran afoul of the state’s open records law by ordering the removal of an election database function that generates a statewide report showing which provisional ballots were not counted.

Civil rights advocates say the decision will have far-reaching implications for government transparency.

Shawnee County District Judge Teresa Watson heard arguments last week in a lawsuit filed by voting rights activist Davis Hammet.

Kansas Secretary of State Scott Schwab has ordered the removal of a database function after a court last year ruled that the information is a public record.