Politics

Groups allege DHS secretly compiled state voter records in lawsuit

Lawsuit filed Thursday contends DHS holds voter files from at least 47 states as DOJ sues California over ballots.

Updated Oct 16, 2026 · 00:20 UTC2 reports

The short version

Voting rights and privacy groups sued DHS on Thursday, seeking to stop what they call a secretive effort to compile voter records.[Associated Press · The Washington Sun]
The groups contend DHS holds records from at least 47 states, citing internal government records.[Associated Press · The Washington Sun]
Separately, the Justice Department sued California over refusing to halt ballots for 20,000 voters flagged as possible noncitizens.[Associated Press · The Washington Sun]
The core records claims are unverified allegations, and the requested court relief is still pending.[Associated Press · The Washington Sun]

Voting rights and privacy groups, including the League of Women Voters and the Electronic Privacy Information Center, filed the lawsuit Thursday against DHS.[Associated Press · The Washington Sun]
The lawsuit contends DHS has obtained voter records from at least 47 states.[Associated Press · The Washington Sun]
The case is brought by the League of Women Voters, the Electronic Privacy Information Center, and the League of United Latin American Citizens.[Associated Press]
An internal Homeland Security Investigations report from June, cited through a Freedom of Information Act request, said DHS ingested more than 50 million voting records.[The Washington Sun]
The same report said DHS Deputy Assistant Secretary Heather Honey obtained over 48 million records.[The Washington Sun]
The Justice Department sued California on Thursday over its refusal to halt ballots for 20,000 voters the administration identified as possible noncitizens.[Associated Press · The Washington Sun]
Thirty states refused to turn over their voter lists to the administration, according to the AP report.[Associated Press]

The claims that DHS holds voter records from 47 states and ingested over 50 million records are unverified allegations drawn from the complaint and an internal report.[Associated Press · The Washington Sun]
The sources do not explain how DHS obtained lists from 47 states when 30 states reportedly refused to provide them.[Associated Press]
The administration's allegations that California delayed reviewing names of likely noncitizens are the government's claims and remain untested in court.[Associated Press · The Washington Sun]

Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.