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yesterday

Justice Department Sues Oregon and Maine to Force Release of Unredacted Voter Rolls

The cases mark the first lawsuits in a wider federal campaign to obtain detailed voter‑registration data from dozens of states under federal voting laws.

FILE - The Department of Justice seal is seen during a news conference at the DOJ office in Washington, May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
PORTLAND, ME - NOVEMBER 8: Voters fill out their ballots in the patriotic voting booths at Merrill Auditorium with a hour and 20 minutes to go before the polls close. (Photo by Brianna Soukup/Portland Portland Press Herald via Getty Images)
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Sign directs voters to a polling station on Election Day in Tucson, Arizona, U.S. November 3, 2020. REUTERS/Cheney Orr/ File Photo

Overview

  • The Justice Department filed suits alleging Oregon and Maine unlawfully refused to provide electronic, unredacted statewide voter lists and records on voter‑list maintenance and ineligible registrants.
  • The complaints assert violations of the National Voter Registration Act, the Help America Vote Act, and the Civil Rights Act of 1960.
  • Federal officials say both states withheld data from the DOJ after previously giving the same information to a private organization, while state leaders cite privacy protections and state authority over elections.
  • Oregon Secretary of State Tobias Read and Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows condemned the demand as federal overreach and pledged to defend voter privacy in court.
  • The lawsuits open litigation in a broader effort in which the DOJ has sought rolls from at least 26 states, requested personal identifiers such as dates of birth and driver’s license numbers, warned Minnesota and California of possible suits, and prompted Washington state to review a similar 14‑day data request.