Case Summary
LWVNYS moved to intervene to protect voter privacy after the United States Department of Justice demanded the state share voters’ sensitive personal information with the federal government. LWVNYS asserted that complying with the request would compromise its members’ privacy and chill voter registration and civic engagement.
Since the beginning of the second Trump Administration, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has issued demands for states to hand over registered voters’ data. This data will potentially be shared with the Department of Homeland Security for criminal and immigration investigations.
New York was among the states that received these requests. During the summer of 2025, the DOJ requested data that included voters’ full name, date of birth, residential address, and either their state driver’s license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number. The DOJ claimed the data was necessary to ensure compliance with the Civil Rights Act of 1960, National Voter Registration Act (NVRA), and the Help America Vote Act (HAVA).
In response, New York refused to provide data containing voters’ confidential information, instead providing a publicly available version of the voter file. In response, on September 25, 2025, the DOJ filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, demanding the confidential information and alleging that New York’s refusal to provide the data violated the Civil Rights Act of 1960, NVRA, and HAVA. The DOJ requested an order mandating disclosure of the data and a ruling that any state laws forbidding the Board of Elections of the State of NY from doing so were preempted by federal law.
On October 24, 2025, the League of Women Voters of New York State (LWVNYS) moved to intervene in the case to defend its members and all New York voters. LWVNYS asserted that the DOJ had no legitimate reasons or legal authority under the NVRA, HAVA, or the Civil Rights Act backing its request, and that disclosing voters’ private information would compromise its members’ privacy and chill the organization’s work around voter registration and civic engagement.
LWVNYS is being represented in this matter by Campaign Legal Center and the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law.
LWV Timeline
DOJ files lawsuit against the NY Board of Elections
The DOJ files a federal lawsuit demanding New York hand over confidential voter information on the grounds it is needed to enforce the Civil Rights Act of 1960, HAVA, and NVRA.
LWVNYS moves to intervene
LWVNYS files a motion to intervene as a defendant, citing the need to protect its members’ privacy and to prevent the chilling of voter registration and civic engagement that would result from the disclosure of private voter information.