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Bernie Sanders speaks during a campaign rally on March 7, 2016, in Dearborn, Mich. | AP Photo Sanders sues Ohio secretary of state over young voter eligibility

Bernie Sanders’ campaign filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday against Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted, accusing him of trying to bar young voters from participating in the state’s March 15 primary.

Specifically, the Sanders campaign alleges Husted is unlawfully blocking 17-year-old voters from casting ballots next week. The suit says Husted’s action would not only “arbitrarily discriminate” against young minority voters but also violate the due process and equal protection provisions of the 14th Amendment.

“It is an outrage that the secretary of state in Ohio is going out of his way to keep young people — significantly African-American young people, Latino young people — from participating,” Sanders said in a statement.

Ohio permits 17-year-olds who will turn 18 before the general election to vote in primaries. In December, however, Husted published a revised election manual that ruled such voters ineligible during the primary.

Sanders has staked his campaign on driving young people and other less-regular voters to the polls.

“I want to do everything that I can to encourage people to participate,” Sanders said Tuesday before a flight from Michigan to Florida. “Unfortunately, in the state of Ohio there is an effort by the secretary of state to do exactly the opposite.”

