The U.S. Supreme Court decided on Wednesday that Virginia will not be required to restore the registrations of approximately 1,600 voters, some of whom may have been mistakenly removed from the voter rolls, just a week ahead of the upcoming election. The decision was made on the court’s emergency docket without a detailed explanation, which is typical in expedited cases. Notably, Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson, the three liberal members of the court, voiced opposition to halting a lower court ruling from earlier in October, which had ordered the state to reinstate these voter registrations.
The Israel-Hamas War Explained: A Comprehensive Overview
Background on the Removal Dispute
This case arose from a directive issued on August 7 by Virginia’s Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin. His executive order instructed the state to cross-check voter registration rolls daily with DMV data to identify and remove non-citizens. The Justice Department and civil rights groups filed a lawsuit, arguing that the state’s actions violate federal law, which prohibits systematic purging of voters within 90 days of a federal election.
Last week, U.S. District Judge Patricia Giles had issued an injunction requiring Virginia to restore these registrations, but that order is now paused by the Supreme Court’s latest decision. Voting experts have long argued that cross-referencing DMV data with voter rolls is an unreliable way to identify non-citizens, as errors in paperwork or later naturalizations may lead to eligible voters being wrongly removed. The plaintiffs in this case highlighted instances of legitimate citizens who had been inadvertently removed from the rolls.
Protect Democracy, a non-profit organization that joined the lawsuit, criticized the removals, stating, “Virginia has not presented any evidence of non-citizens voting. Instead, eligible voters are caught in this election-subversion scheme.” A spokesperson from the Justice Department echoed this, expressing disagreement with the Supreme Court’s ruling and emphasizing their commitment to ensuring that every eligible American can vote.
Kamala Harris Campaign’s Response
Kamala Harris’s campaign also responded to the ruling, affirming that every eligible voter has the right to cast a ballot and pledging efforts to help voters participate in the upcoming election. The campaign emphasized that non-citizen voting remains illegal under federal law and expressed confidence in a fair, secure election process.
Meanwhile, some Republicans, including former President Donald Trump and his allies, have claimed that the lower court’s initial ruling would have allowed non-citizens onto the voter rolls. However, the state of Virginia has not provided conclusive evidence that the removed voters were non-citizens.
Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares, a Republican, praised the Supreme Court’s decision, saying it was an important step to “keep non-citizens off our voter rolls.” Governor Glenn Youngkin also celebrated the order as a “victory for common sense and election fairness,” thanking Miyares for his efforts to protect what they see as the fundamental voting rights of U.S. citizens.
Voters mark their ballots during early voting at a polling location in Arlington, Virginia, this month. Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty Images
Implications for Virginia Voters
The Supreme Court’s decision is the latest in a series of rulings that favor Republicans in election-related cases. Virginia, a state that has leaned towards supporting Kamala Harris, provides same-day voter registration, meaning voters removed from the rolls may still be able to re-register at polling places if they encounter issues on Election Day.
