Tennessee elections chief accused of intimidation for telling 14,375 voters to prove citizenship

Republican secretary of state sends vaguely worded letter to voters weeks before primary

Tennessee's top election official asked more than 14,000 registered voters to prove their citizenship in a vaguely worded letter last month in what voting and immigrant groups say is an attempt to intimidate voters.

The office of the Tennessee secretary of state, Tre Hargett, a Republican, sent the letter to 14,375 voters on 13 June, weeks before early voting was to begin for the state's August primary. Our office has received information that appears to indicate that your voter information matches with an individual who may not have been a United States citizen at the time of obtaining a Tennessee license or ID card," the letter says.