Federal Judge Orders DHS to Resume Sharing Immigration Database with Four States for Voter Roll Citizenship Checks

U.S. District Judge T. Kent Wetherell II ordered the Department of Homeland Security to restore voter database access to Florida, Ohio, Iowa, and Indiana, finding that disabling it violated a prior settlement. This conflicts with Judge Sparkle Sooknanan's nationwide halt of the revamped SAVE database, which voting rights advocates argue risks disenfranchising naturalized citizens. Sooknanan rejected a pause on her ruling, calling Wetherell's decision an advisory opinion.

Conflicting federal court rulings

• ▪U.S. District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan on July 8, 2026 rejected a request to pause her ruling, stating Judge Wetherell erred and issued an advisory opinion
• ▪U.S. District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan issued a June 22, 2026 decision halting the nationwide use of the revamped Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements database
• ▪U.S. District Judge T. Kent Wetherell II ordered the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to resume giving Florida, Ohio, Iowa, and Indiana access to the SAVE database

SAVE database citizenship verification

• ▪The revamped Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements database includes Social Security numbers, citizenship status, and other data on people nationwide
• ▪A revamp of the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements database allowed users to search many records at once and access Social Security numbers

Voter roll purge concerns

• ▪Voting rights and privacy advocates argue that the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements database overhaul made it less accurate, risking disenfranchisement of eligible voters
• ▪Several Republican-led states have used the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements database to compare voter lists and cancel registrations of flagged noncitizens

Trump election oversight blocked

• ▪Donald Trump and his allies assert that states do not prevent voter fraud, though audits and academic studies show voter fraud is rare
• ▪Courts have largely blocked the Trump administration's efforts to boost federal control over elections, including executive orders requiring proof of citizenship

DHS settlement violation ruling

• ▪Judge Wetherell approved the Trump administration's settlement of a 2024 lawsuit filed by Florida challenging the prior implementation of the SAVE system
• ▪Judge Wetherell ruled that disabling database access for Florida, Ohio, Iowa, and Indiana violated a settlement the Trump administration entered into with those states