FILE-Voters cast their ballots at a polling station in McLean, Virginia, on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The Department of Justice is suing six more states in its continuing attempts to secure voter data and additional election information.
DOJ sues states for voter data
Dig deeper:
On Dec. 2, the Justice Department sued Delaware, Maryland, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington State over their "failure" to provide statewide voter registration data.
The new lawsuit by the DOJ brings the total number of states the agency has sued to obtain voter information to at least 14.
RELATED: DOJ suing Oregon and Maine as it seeks voter data in multiple states
The Associated Press reported that the Justice Department requested voter data from roughly 26 states.
In November, 10 Democratic secretaries of state requested that the Trump administration provide more information about its attempts to gain statewide voter registration lists.
According to the AP, the secretaries of state referenced worries that federal agencies allegedly misinformed them and could use the data to verify U.S. citizenship.
New Mexico and Rhode Island officials respond to DOJ
Local perspective:
State officials from New Mexico and Rhode Island issued statements in response to the Justice Department’s request for voter data.
RELATED: Trump says he will require voter ID with executive order
The New Mexico Secretary of State's office told the Associated Press that it has already provided the DOJ with voter data that is publicly available, but added it's legally prevented from turning over "personal private voter information," office spokesperson Alex Curtas said in a statement, obtained by the AP.
Rhode Island Attorney General Attorney Peter Neronha explained to the Associated Press that his office was aware of the lawsuit and called it the "latest example of the weaponization of the Department of Justice to further the Trump administration’s unlawful whims."
Has the DOJ received voter data from other states?
Why you should care:
Some states have spurned or objected to the voter registration data requests, citing their own state laws or the Justice Department’s negligence to meet federal Privacy Act obligations. Federal officials have followed up by sending additional letters demanding the voter data on short deadlines.
Meanwhile, several states have sent redacted versions of their voter lists that are available to the public, but the DOJ has demanded copies that contain personal information like voter names, birth dates, addresses and driver’s license numbers or partial Social Security numbers.
The Source: Information for this story was provided by previous LIVENOW from FOX reporting and the Associated Press, which obtained statements from New Mexico and Rhode Island regarding the voter data request. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.