Judge blocks DOJ from using national voter database to boot citizen voters

A federal judge blocked the Justice Department from using the SAVE database, built to verify immigration status for benefits applicants, to review state voter rolls and cancel registrations it deemed ineligible. U.S. District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan called it an attempt by the administration to 'decide who gets to vote,' and cited DOJ arguments that every citizen who registers is effectively the subject of a fraud investigation.

The suit, brought by Common Cause, featured four citizen plaintiffs whose registrations were canceled after states handed voter rolls to DOJ. One plaintiff, flagged as a noncitizen because his passport had expired, got his registration reinstated only after a two-month wait to renew it.

DOJ has demanded voter rolls from 49 states and D.C.; 18 states complied and 26 refused, prompting DOJ lawsuits that have been dismissed in every instance so far, with the Sixth Circuit upholding one dismissal. The judge noted her ruling doesn't stop states from maintaining their own rolls or let ineligible voters vote.

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