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.”
A spokesperson for the North Carolina Board of Elections appeared to acknowledge that not all voter registrants were in compliance with federal regulations, but vowed to correct the issue.
“I was only recently notified of this action by the United States Department of Justice,” Sam Hayes, executive director of the State Board of Elections said in a statement provided Wednesday to the Daily Caller News Foundation. “We are still reviewing the complaint, but the failure to collect the information required by HAVA has been well documented.”
“Rest assured that I am committed to bringing North Carolina into compliance with federal law,” Hayes continued.
The lawsuit is the Trump administration’s latest move to bolster election integrity and security across the U.S.
In March, President Donald Trump signed the “Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections,” an executive order aimed to keep elections in compliance with federal laws that protect against illegal voting, discrimination and other forms of fraud. In May, the administration rolled out a new feature for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services which allows state and local officials to input Social Security numbers for verification of U.S. citizenship, helping prevent foreign nationals from participating in U.S. elections.
Federal prosecutors have also remained steadfast against non-citizens who have allegedly voted in U.S. elections, with numerous high-profile incitements announced in the past several months.
The administration in April charged two Ukrainian nationals — 53-year-old Svitlana Demydenko and her 22-year-old daughter, Yelyzaveta Demydenko — with unlawfully voting in the 2024 presidential election. Akeel Abdul Jamiel — a 45-year-old Iraqi national — was also accused by federal prosecutors that same month of participating in the 2020 presidential election.
Lina Maria Orovio-Hernandez, a 59-year-old illegal migrant residing in Boston, lived in the country for more than 20 years under a stolen identity and improperly received around $400,000 in rental assistance, Social Security and food stamp benefits, the DOJ alleged earlier in May. The indictment against her says she not only voted in the 2024 presidential election, but had been registered to vote since January 2023.
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