Federal judge dismisses DOJ lawsuit against Arizona seeking voter data
PHOENIX — A federal judge on Tuesday dismissed a U.S. Justice Department lawsuit against Arizona seeking access to the state’s detailed voter records, the latest legal setback in a nationwide effort by the Trump administration.
U.S. District Judge Susan Brnovich, a Trump appointee, wrote that Arizona’s statewide voter registration list is “not a document subject to request by the Attorney General” under federal law. The judge dismissed the lawsuit with prejudice because, she wrote, “an amendment would be legally unnecessary.”
The dismissal of the Arizona lawsuit follows a series of other rulings against the Justice Department in similar cases in other states. The DOJ has sued at least 30 states and the District of Columbia to obtain the forced release of detailed voter data, including dates of birth, addresses, driver’s license numbers and partial Social Security numbers.
In addition to Arizona, judges have rejected such attempts in Rhode Island, California, Massachusetts, Michigan and Oregon. In Georgia, a judge dismissed a DOJ lawsuit because it was filed in the wrong city, prompting the government to file a new suit elsewhere.
The DOJ sued Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes in January for failing to respond to its request for detailed voter information.
“This moment is a victory for voter privacy,” Fontes said in a statement. “I will never comply with illegal demands that endanger Arizona voters.”
The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
At least 13 states have provided or promised to provide their detailed voter registration lists to the department, according to reporting by the Brennan Center and The Associated Press: Alaska, Arkansas, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas and Wyoming.
Federal officials say they need voter data to ensure states follow federal election laws related to maintaining voter registration lists. In the Rhode Island case, a Justice Department attorney acknowledged that the department sought unredacted information on voter rolls so it could be shared with the Department of Homeland Security to verify citizenship status.
Democratic and Republican officials opposed the requests and said such a request violated federal and state privacy laws.
