Trump Administration Sues North Carolina To Clean Voter Rolls

The Trump administration is taking North Carolina to court for allegedly failing to maintain a voter registration list compliant with federal laws.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit against the state and its Board of Elections, according to a Tuesday press release by the agency. The DOJ is accusing state officials of failing to maintain an accurate voter list in violation of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA), demanding the names of individuals who did not provide all required information to register to vote be removed from voter rolls.

“Accurate voter registration rolls are critical to ensure that elections in North Carolina are conducted fairly, accurately, and without fraud,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said in a prepared statement.

“The Department of Justice will not hesitate to file suit against jurisdictions that maintain inaccurate voter registration rolls in violation of federal voting laws,” Dhillon continued.

North Carolina violated HAVA’s mandate by using a state voter registration form that did not require voters to “provide identifying information” such as the last four digits of a Social Security number or a driver’s license, according to the DOJ’s lawsuit. Voters who did not provide the required information were still allegedly added to the state’s voter registration list, with many of these individuals reportedly remaining on the state’s voter rolls.

“Upon information and belief there currently are a significant number of voters that do not have a driver’s license number, last four digits of a social security number, or any other identifying number, as required by Section 303 of HAVA, listed in North Carolina’s state voter registration file,” the lawsuit stated. “Those violations will continue absent relief from this Court.”