Tracker: DOJ Lawsuits Seeking States' Sensitive Voter Data

As part of President Trump’s efforts to expand federal control over the country’s historically state-run election infrastructure, the U.S. Department of Justice has demanded copies of states’ complete voter registration lists, including voters’ highly sensitive data like birthdates, partial Social Security numbers, and driver’s license numbers.

The Justice Department claims it needs this information to assess whether states are complying with federal requirements to maintain accurate voter rolls, but states have mostly resisted these demands, citing state and federal privacy laws that protect Americans’ sensitive personal data. Faced with widespread pushback, the Justice Department has filed federal lawsuits against 30 states (so far) and the District of Columbia, seeking orders compelling these jurisdictions to turn over their data.

This tracker monitors the Justice Department’s lawsuits, providing key information for each, including the current status and key decisions as they are announced. ¹ We will update this tracker regularly as new information becomes available.

To date, eight federal district courts have dismissed the Justice Department's suits on the merits—the suits against California, Oregon, Michigan, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Arizona, Wisconsin, and Maine (chronological order). Another court dismissed the suit against Georgia for filing in the wrong venue; the Justice Department subsequently refiled in the correct district. The Justice Department has so far filed appeals in the dismissals of the suits against California, Oregon, Michigan, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Arizona, Wisconsin, and Maine.

Additionally, the Justice Department has reached a settlement with one state, Oklahoma, with the state agreeing to provide its sensitive voter data in exchange for the Justice Department dismissing the lawsuit.

For a deeper dive into the legal issues at the heart of these standoffs, see our report, "Can the Federal Government Force States to Hand over Citizens’ Voter Information?"