New York – The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law, represented by the Democracy Forward Foundation, filed suit against the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) for failing to turn over documents related to the Department’s unprecedented campaign for access to and attempted control over state voter rolls nationwide. Since last May, DOJ has demanded full voter rolls—including drivers’ license and partial social security numbers—from almost every state; at least 16 states have provided them to DOJ. In April, the Brennan Center sent expedited Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests for communications with states about procuring voter rolls, agreements with outside contractors and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security about the voter roll review process, and lists identifying potentially ineligible voters. DOJ has not produced any documents in response to the FOIA requests or granted expedited processing of these requests for critical information.
Eileen O’Connor, senior counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law, had the following reaction:
“With the midterms around the corner, the Department of Justice must release the documents about what it’s doing with hundreds of thousands of voters’ sensitive information. What we’ve seen so far in this unprecedented capture of state voter rolls indicates that the agency isn’t taking appropriate precautions to protect voters’ data or to ensure that eligible voters will not be kicked off the rolls. Not only is the department’s voter roll drive an enormous overstep by the federal government, it imperils individual voters’ right to know their eligibility status going into the midterms in time to correct any mistakes and cast ballots.”
Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward at Democracy Forward Foundation, said:
“The right to vote, freely and fairly, is for all Americans and is a foundation of democracy. Yet this administration continues to seek ways to undermine that freedom. We are proud to represent the Brennan Center to force the administration to follow the law and release information on its unprecedented effort to obtain and influence voter registration lists. What every American should be asking is: What are they hiding? Why is the federal government not coming forward with information about how it is seeking to use voter data? We are going to court and will find out.
Read the complaint filed today here, and the brief in support of a preliminary injunction here.
For more information about the DOJ’s collection of voter rolls, please see:
- “Tracker of Justice Department Requests for Voter Information”
- “‘Confidential’ Agreements Show Trump Administration’s Plans for States’ Voter Data”
- “The Justice Department’s Security Measures for Collecting Voter Rolls Are Inadequate”
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Democracy Forward Foundation is a national legal organization that advances democracy and social progress through litigation, policy, public education, and regulatory engagement. For more information, please visit www.democracyforward.org.
