The Department of Justice (DOJ) has initiated legal actions against 18 states and Fulton County, Georgia, seeking access to voter registration lists and 2020 election records. These actions are part of a broader federal effort to obtain voter data, which has recently seen a federal judge dismiss a related DOJ lawsuit targeting California's voter file. The DOJ states its purpose is to verify state compliance with federal laws regarding the maintenance of accurate voter rolls. Many states have cited privacy restrictions in declining to provide the requested information.
DOJ Litigation Against States and Counties
The Department of Justice has filed lawsuits against 18 states, seeking complete, unredacted copies of voter registration lists. These lists typically include sensitive information such as driver's license numbers and portions of Social Security numbers. The DOJ's stated purpose for these requests is to verify that states are adhering to federal laws concerning the maintenance of accurate voter rolls. The targeted states are predominantly led by Democratic administrations and were won by President Biden in the 2020 election.
The most recent states to face lawsuits from the Justice Department include Colorado, Hawaii, Massachusetts, and Nevada. Officials in most of the targeted states have declined to provide the requested information, citing privacy restrictions.
In addition to the state-level lawsuits, the Justice Department has filed a separate lawsuit against Fulton County, Georgia. This action aims to compel local election officials to release all ballots and associated records from the 2020 election. Fulton County has been a focal point for claims regarding the integrity of the 2020 election results. This legal action follows the dismissal of an election interference case against former President Trump and his associates, which had been brought by county prosecutors.
Judicial Developments
A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Department of Justice that sought access to California's unredacted voter file. This file contained sensitive information such as Social Security numbers and driver's license data. A district judge in Oregon has also indicated an intent to dismiss a similar case.
Judge David O. Carter, who presided over the California case, determined that the government's request was "unprecedented and illegal." He stated that the DOJ's demand for sensitive data could exert a "chilling effect" on citizens, particularly political minority groups and working-class immigrants, potentially deterring them from registering to vote or casting ballots due to concerns over how their information might be utilized. Judge Carter also characterized the DOJ's lawsuit as a "fishing expedition," asserting that the federal government is not permitted to initiate litigation solely for the purpose of obtaining discovery before finalizing its allegations. The U.S. Constitution generally assigns states the authority to administer their own elections with minimal executive branch involvement.
The California decision is the first to emerge from numerous voter data lawsuits nationwide and is expected to face an appeal.
Official Statements and State Responses
Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon stated, "At this Department of Justice, we will not permit states to jeopardize the integrity and effectiveness of elections by refusing to abide by our federal elections laws. If states will not fulfill their duty to protect the integrity of the ballot, we will." Dhillon also referenced the use of a citizenship lookup tool within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for processing voter records.
Officials in Colorado are among those who have voiced opposition to the pursuit of voter data. Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold, a Democrat, stated, "We will not hand over Coloradans' sensitive voting information to Donald Trump. He does not have a legal right to the information. I will continue to protect our elections and democracy, and look forward to winning this case." State officials from across the political spectrum have previously expressed concerns that the federal government had not historically been granted access to this type of data, and they voiced worries about potential alternative uses of the information.
Related Developments
Former President Trump announced on social media a pardon for Tina Peters, a former Colorado county clerk. Peters is currently serving a nine-year sentence after a conviction for unauthorized access to voting equipment, an action she undertook to investigate the 2020 election. Peters' conviction was on state charges, not federal. The authority to issue pardons for state-level offenses rests with Colorado's governor.
Separately, the Department of Justice recently announced a review of Colorado's prison system.
Previous attempts in 2017 to obtain similar election data by the Trump administration were largely rejected by states. More recently, at least eight Republican-led states have either voluntarily provided or committed to providing their full statewide registration lists. This data has been processed through the DHS SAVE system, designed to identify non-citizens. Reports indicate that after reviewing millions of records, the system has not produced evidence of widespread voter fraud.