A federal judge granted a Department of Justice request to block Virginia from systematically removing alleged non-citizens from the voter rolls close to an election. U.S. District Judge Patricia Giles ordered Virginia to cease its program immediately and restore the voter registrations of over 1,600 people who were removed within five days. This decision comes just days before Election Day and with early voting already underway in the state. Civil rights groups hailed the ruling as a victory for eligible voters and the right to vote. The Justice Department and the state of Virginia have been at odds over the program, with the state defending it as necessary to prevent non-citizens from voting. However, the program has been criticized for catching American citizens and those who made errors on forms indicating citizenship status. States are prohibited from removing people from the voter rolls within 90 days of an election under the National Voter Registration Act, which was a key factor in the judge’s ruling. Governor Youngkin plans to appeal the decision to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals and potentially the U.S. Supreme Court. The ruling has implications for voting rights and the integrity of the electoral process in Virginia and beyond, as both sides continue to debate the program’s legality and impact on eligible voters.
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Virginia prevented from removing suspected non-citizens from voter lists by federal judge
