Supreme Court allows Virginia to continue purging voter registrations

Supreme Court Allows Virginia to Continue Voter Roll Purge

According to AP

Here are the details.

The U.S. Supreme Court, with its conservative majority, authorized Virginia on Wednesday to resume purging its voter rolls, a measure the state claims is intended to prevent non-citizens from voting.

This decision came despite objections from the court’s three liberal justices.

The court acted in response to an emergency appeal filed by the Republican administration of Governor Glenn Youngkin.

As is common in emergency appeals, the decision was accompanied by a justification.

Supreme Court Allows Virginia to Continue Voter Roll Purge

BREAKING: Supreme Court rules 6-3 to allow Virginia to remove noncitizens from its voting rolls, lifting an order that halted the program. pic.twitter.com/dLO0lnSyy6

— America (@america) October 30, 2024

The measure was taken after a federal judge determined that Virginia had unlawfully removed more than 1,600 voter registrations in the past two months, ordering a halt to the purge.

However, an appeals court allowed the judge’s order to remain in effect.

Though illegal voting is rare in U.S. elections, concerns over illegal voting by immigrants have been a recurring theme in the political rhetoric of former President Donald Trump and other Republicans.

Trump criticized the prior court ruling, calling it «completely unacceptable mischief» on social media, stating that «only U.S. citizens should be allowed to vote.»

This Supreme Court Decision Has Legal Implications

The Department of Justice and a group of private organizations sued the state in early October, arguing that Virginia’s election officials, acting under an executive order issued by Youngkin in August, were removing names from the voter rolls in violation of federal election law.

The National Voter Registration Act mandates a 90-day “quiet period” before elections for maintaining voter rolls to ensure legitimate voters are not removed due to bureaucratic errors.

Youngkin issued his order on August 7, exactly 90 days before the November 5 election, requiring daily data verifications from the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles to identify non-citizens.

Organizations like Protect Democracy have argued that the purge has led to the removal of U.S. citizens from the voter rolls.

One notable case is that of Nadra Wilson, a Lynchburg, Virginia, resident, who was affected by this purge despite being born in Brooklyn and possessing a U.S. passport as proof of her citizenship.

Governor Youngkin Addresses the Decision

District Judge Patricia Giles ruled that election officials could still remove names individually but not through a systematic purge.

Governor Youngkin hailed the Supreme Court’s action as «a victory for common sense and electoral fairness,» arguing that maintaining clean voter rolls is essential to ensure fair elections.

With nearly 6 million registered voters, Virginia’s case has reignited the debate over electoral integrity and the measures needed to protect it.