Justice Department sues Arizona, Connecticut for failure to produce voter rolls

The US Department of Justice is expanding its nationwide push to obtain state voter registration data, filing new federal lawsuits against Arizona and Connecticut for allegedly refusing to provide complete statewide voter registration lists upon request.

In a statement announcing the suits, Attorney General Pamela Bondi said, “This Department of Justice has now sued 23 states for failing to provide voter roll data and will continue filing lawsuits to protect American elections. Accurate voter rolls are the foundation of election integrity, and any state that fails to meet this basic obligation of transparency can expect to see us in court.”

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon, who leads the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, said, “Accurate voter rolls are essential to ensuring that American citizens’ votes count only once, and only with other eligible voters. The Justice Department is committed to safeguarding fair and free elections, and will hold states accountable when they refuse to respect our federal elections laws.”

According to the DOJ, Congress uniquely empowered the Attorney General to enforce voter registration and list maintenance under the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) and the Help America Vote Act (HAVA), laws designed to ensure states maintain effective voter registration systems. The department also cites the Civil Rights Act of 1960, which it says allows the federal government to demand the production, inspection, and analysis of statewide voter rolls.

Arizona and Connecticut join a growing list of states already taken to court, including Washington, which was among six states sued in early December after Secretary of State Steve Hobbs declined to turn over records without further explanation of how the data would be used.

Other recent DOJ actions include lawsuits filed against Delaware, Maryland, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington in early December. In late September, the department also sued California, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, New Hampshire, and Pennsylvania, citing the same legal authorities. In mid-December, the DOJ announced additional lawsuits against Georgia, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Washington, DC.