Rhode Island Prevails in Legal Battle Over Voter Records Request from DOJ's Civil Rights Division
Rhode Island recently emerged victorious in a legal battle against the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division, which had requested access to sensitive voter records. Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon had sought voter data from all states to address President Donald Trump's concerns about the 2020 election outcome. While 17 Republican-led states complied with the request, the DOJ sued 29 states and Washington, D.C. for their refusal.
U.S. District Judge Mary S. McElroy, a Trump appointee, ruled on the matter, highlighting the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) and the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) as governing laws for handling voter records. Judge McElroy found the DOJ's demand lacking a legal basis to meet the requirements of Title III, as it failed to provide evidence of potential violations of the NVRA and HAVA by Rhode Island.
The court determined that the DOJ's request did not align with individual voting rights protection under the NVRA and HAVA, as it appeared to be a broad fishing expedition without specific allegations of non-compliance. Consequently, the motion to compel production was denied, and the defendants' motions to dismiss were granted in Rhode Island's favor.
Following this legal victory, Dhillon, who had faced previous defeats in similar cases, still has 25 pending lawsuits against states that did not cooperate with the voter records request. Rhode Island's successful defense against the DOJ's demands sets a precedent for other states in protecting their voter data and upholding election integrity.