Lawsuit challenges Trump DHS effort to collect voter data from states as violating federal law

Three civil rights organizations filed a federal lawsuit on October 15, 2026, alleging that the Department of Homeland Security illegally collected voter records from at least 47 states and combined them with commercial datasets. Simultaneously, the U.S. Justice Department sued California officials to block 20,000 mail-in ballots from alleged noncitizens. State leadership condemned the action as unlawful voter suppression three weeks before Election Day, citing prior federal list errors in Nevada.

Lawsuit over DHS voter data collection

• ▪The October 15, 2026 lawsuit alleges that the Department of Homeland Security violated the Privacy Act by obtaining voter files from at least 47 states and combining them with commercial datasets beyond its statutory mission of counterterrorism and border security.
• ▪The October 15, 2026 complaint requests that the federal court declare the Department of Homeland Security voter data collection illegal, block the policy, and order the agency to delete all obtained voter files.
• ▪On October 15, 2026, the League of Women Voters, the Electronic Privacy Information Center, and the League of United Latin American Citizens filed a federal lawsuit in Washington, D.C. against the Department of Homeland Security.

Justice Department voter list sharing

• ▪A May 2026 Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel opinion authorized federal prosecutors to acquire statewide voter lists and transfer them to the Department of Homeland Security for noncitizen voter identification.
• ▪Government letters released in 2026 revealed that the Department of Justice has actively shared obtained state voter lists with the Department of Homeland Security.

Previous DHS claims of noncitizen voters

• ▪Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin previously asserted in 2026 that over 190,000 noncitizens were registered to vote in California before federal authorities lowered the estimate to 20,000 without explanation.
• ▪Department of Homeland Security officials previously alleged in 2026 that 16,000 potential noncitizens were on Nevada voter rolls, but a subsequent state investigation confirmed every listed individual was an eligible U.S. citizen.

Justice Department action targeting California voters

• ▪Los Angeles County Registrar Dean Logan and California Secretary of State Shirley Weber declined to set aside ballots, stating the Justice Department provided no underlying evidence or methodology to substantiate its noncitizen claims.
• ▪California Governor Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta publicly condemned the Justice Department lawsuit, characterizing it as an unlawful attempt by the Trump administration to suppress California voters three weeks before Election Day.
• ▪The U.S. Justice Department filed a federal lawsuit in California on October 15, 2026, seeking to block state election officials from counting mail-in ballots from approximately 20,000 voters flagged as likely noncitizens.
• ▪Federal prosecutors gave California Secretary of State Shirley Weber and Los Angeles County Registrar Dean Logan a 48-hour deadline on October 13, 2026, to verify the citizenship status of 20,000 voters on a password-protected thumb drive.

Prevalence and prosecution of noncitizen voting

• ▪Academic research and law enforcement prosecution records show that documented instances of noncitizens casting ballots in U.S. elections are exceedingly rare.
• ▪Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter announced in October 2026 that federal prosecutors charged 50 individuals with voting crimes over the prior month.