Federal judge dismisses DOJ lawsuit seeking detailed information about
Rhode Island voters
[April 18, 2026]
By KIMBERLEE KRUESI
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — A federal judge on Friday dismissed a Trump
administration lawsuit demanding detailed voter data from Rhode Island,
a decision that follows similar rulings in a handful of other states.
U.S. District Court Judge Mary McElroy sided with Rhode Island's top
election officials and civil rights advocates, writing that federal law
does not permit the U.S. Department of Justice “to conduct the kind of
fishing expedition it seeks here.”
In an emailed response, the Justice Department said it would not comment
on ongoing litigation.
McElroy's decision is similar to other rejections by federal judges
across country since the Justice Department began seeking detailed voter
data from the states. The information includes dates of birth,
addresses, driver’s license numbers and partial Social Security numbers.
Federal officials say they need the voter data to ensure election
security, but Democratic and some Republican officials have objected to
the requests and said such a demand violates state and federal privacy
laws.
“The executive branch seems to have no problem taking actions that are
clear Constitutional overreaches, regularly meddling in responsibilities
that are the rights of the states,” Rhode Island Secretary of State
Gregg M. Amore said in a statement. "But the power of our democratic
republic, built on three, coequal branches of government, is clearer
than ever before.”
Some election officials have raised concerns that federal officials will
use the sensitive data for other purposes, such as searching for
potential noncitizens. Those concerns were raised again after the DOJ's
attorneys acknowledged in the Rhode Island case that the department was
seeking unredacted voter roll information so it could be shared with the
Department of Homeland Security to check citizenship status.
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A person early votes in the Virginia redistricting referendum at the
Fairfax County Government Center, Friday, April 3, 2026, in Fairfax,
Va. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
At least 12 states have either provided or promised to provide their
detailed voter registration lists to the department, according to
the Brennan Center: Alaska, Arkansas, Indiana, Louisiana,
Mississippi, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee,
Texas and Wyoming.
Meanwhile, the DOJ has sued at least 30 states and the District of
Columbia seeking to force release of the data. In addition to Rhode
Island, judges have rejected those attempts in California,
Massachusetts, Michigan and Oregon. In Georgia, a judge dismissed a
DOJ lawsuit because it had been filed in the wrong city, prompting
the government to refile elsewhere.
In Rhode Island, McElroy sided with the federal judge's decision in
Oregon. That ruling said the federal government was not entitled to
unredacted voter registration lists containing sensitive data and
said the Justice Department had failed to identify a basis or a
purpose for requesting the voter records.
“Absent from the demand are any factual allegations suggesting that
Rhode Island may be violating the list maintenance requirements,”
McElroy wrote.
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