In an effort to provide easier access to voter information, the Office of the Secretary of State and Alabama Interactive announced on April 22 that they will be launching a new online portal. This portal will include voter information and access to voter history, not limited to county school districts, county commission districts and state house districts.

"We are very excited to be able to offer this service to the citizens of Alabama," said Secretary John Merrill. "This new feature continues my efforts to increase transparency and will allow any interested citizen, candidate or elected official to be able to custom prepare and purchase the voter list they desire without having to contact another person to do it. The system will be secure, cost-efficient, and provide easy access to the available information."

The Secretary of State already offers certified business documents, foreign LLC filings and certificates of existence. The development of this online portal will expand its offerings with voter data. However, official election results, poll lists and information pertaining to official election preparation will not be accessible through the portal, which can be accessed at www.alabamainteractive.org.

Alabama is not the first state to offer this type of portal with voter information. Minnesota, Louisiana and South Dakota are just some of the many states to introduce these types of resources for residents throughout their respective areas.

Voter information portals are designed to make it simpler for residents to access critical information, such as whether they are registered to vote. While the Alabama portal does not offer city wide of municipal district voter information, some portals do offer additional insight. Louisiana's portal, for instance, allows individuals to hone in on voter information down to an address level.

Individuals who want to use Alabama's portal to purchase voter information online will be charged one cent per voter list information online. The price isn't steep, and it provides users with the transparency they desire when it comes to everything related to voting in Alabama.

For safety and security purposes, provisions are in place to protect victims, as well as the parents of victims of domestic violence, under Code of Alabama 1975, Section 17-4-33(b). Any questions can be directed to the Office of the Secretary of State.