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N.C. Republicans investigating Democratic Secretary of State

North Carolina Republicans have formed a House Select Committee to investigate Democratic Secretary of State Elaine Marshall and consider impeachment proceedings.

Marshall has been in office for 20 years.

The investigation revolves around individuals who are commissioned as notary publics in North Carolina.

A notary public is often used to witness the signing of important legal documents, then certify it with a seal.

At the heart of the issue is the application form used to become a notary public in North Carolina.

The fine print clearly said that if the applicant is not a U.S. citizen, they must provide a "permanent resident card,” which is also known as a green card.

Marshall acknowledges her office has accepted documents other than green cards when issuing notary public commissions.

Republicans say that's a violation of state and federal law.

Republican Rep. Chris Millis first brought this issue to light last March.

On Wednesday, Millis introduced a resolution that could lead to the impeachment of Secretary of State Marshall over the issue.

Millis said he's uncovered "hundreds" of examples of unqualified immigrants receiving notary stamps, including one person who became a notary public after being scheduled for deportation.

The secretary of state and her staff denied any wrongdoing and provided this statement:

Statement by North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine F. Marshall:

"I strongly oppose today's House Rules Committee resolution and I reject Representative Millis' claim that any state or federal laws were broken by this Department.”

“My Office has never commissioned a notary public on the basis of a DACA card. We have openly communicated with the General Assembly about our process. We have always told the General Assembly that if they want to change the notary law, we will administer such changes. Not one single change has been sent to us to administer in this area.”

“The public should continue to have full confidence in the integrity of the more than 144,000 notaries public in North Carolina. Every single non-citizen we have commissioned as a notary public has presented appropriate federally-issued work authorization documentation to qualify as a notary.

“I can only conclude that this is a political attack and nothing else."