U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell is urging the Department of Justice to halt its lawsuits seeking access to state voter registration databases, including a case against Washington, warning that the effort risks voter privacy and exceeds federal authority.
In a Jan. 29 letter to Attorney General Pamela Bondi, Cantwell criticized what she described as an intensifying federal campaign to pressure states into handing over voter rolls that include personally identifiable information.
The letter responds to lawsuits filed by the Justice Department, including one against Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs, alleging states violated federal law by refusing to provide unredacted voter registration records.
Cantwell said the lawsuits are unauthorized attempts to centralize sensitive voter data and pose risks to voter privacy, data security and national security.
She also warned the effort could lead to unwarranted voter roll purges and undermine state and local election officials’ list maintenance work.
The Washington lawsuit, filed Dec. 2, alleges Hobbs violated the Civil Rights Act of 1960 by refusing to turn over the state’s full voter registration database after a Sept. 8 request from federal officials.
The Justice Department says the request is part of a compliance review under the National Voter Registration Act and the Help America Vote Act.
Federal attorneys argue they are entitled to unredacted voter lists, including dates of birth, driver’s license numbers and the last four digits of Social Security numbers, to evaluate whether states are properly maintaining voter rolls.
Hobbs has said Washington law bars the release of that information, even to the federal government.
Cantwell’s letter sharply disputes the Justice Department’s authority to demand the records.
She pointed to what she called an escalation in federal pressure, including a January letter to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz that she said sought voter rolls as a condition for ending recent federal immigration enforcement deployments in that state.
“This pursuit of state voter rolls for what it is, nothing more than an ‘apparent ransom,’” Cantwell wrote.
She also cited recent federal court rulings in California and Oregon that dismissed similar Justice Department lawsuits.
In the California case, Cantwell quoted a judge who wrote that the department’s campaign to collect sensitive voter data “paints an alarming picture regarding the centralization of Americans’ information within the Executive Branch.”
Cantwell said the Civil Rights Act provisions the Justice Department relies on were enacted to address discriminatory voting practices and cannot be used as a broad authorization to collect voter data nationwide.
The letter raises extensive questions about how much voter data the Justice Department already possesses, how it is being stored, who has access to it, and whether it is being shared with other federal agencies, contractors or outside groups.
Cantwell also expressed concern about potential coordination with the Department of Homeland Security’s SAVE program and cited instances in which voters were incorrectly flagged as noncitizens.
Cantwell and other senators requested that the Justice Department brief Congress and provide written responses to prior questions about its voter data practices by Feb. 26.
On Feb. 2, Cantwell publicly reiterated her opposition to the lawsuit against Washington.
“Pam Bondi has sued Washington state to get sensitive voter data,” Cantwell said. “I’m standing strong against efforts to undermine our voting system. Democracies don’t grow on trees. They need to be protected, defended, and fought for.”
The Justice Department has said it has filed lawsuits against multiple states, including Washington, for failing to provide voter registration lists.
Federal officials argue the attorney general is charged by Congress with enforcing federal election laws and ensuring accurate voter rolls.