Overview
- A coalition of 23 states and the District of Columbia filed in Boston federal court on Friday to halt the March 31 order that tells Homeland Security and Social Security to build citizenship lists and directs the Postal Service to deliver ballots only to people on those lists.
- Separate lawsuits by voting-rights groups and Democratic leaders, including the ACLU, League of Women Voters, the DNC, and top Democrats in Congress, ask for swift injunctions to keep current mail voting in place for upcoming primaries and the November midterms.
- Two Republican election officials, Pennsylvania’s Al Schmidt and Arizona’s Stephen Richer, said Sunday they expect courts to overturn the order, arguing the Constitution gives states—not the president—the power to set election rules and noting noncitizen voting is rare.
- The Justice Department’s parallel push for unredacted voter rolls has escalated privacy concerns after acting official Eric Neff admitted in a March 27 court filing that preliminary pooling and analysis of sensitive data had begun, despite earlier telling a judge no analysis was underway.
- Plaintiffs warn the order’s 60-day deadlines, barcode-only ballot envelopes, and threats of funding cuts or prosecution could cause rejected ballots and confusion for voters—including military members and citizens abroad—unless courts step in soon.