The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed a lawsuit against the Orange County Registrar of Voters (OCR), accusing the office of failing to comply with federal law by refusing to provide records related to the removal of noncitizens from voter registration lists and the maintenance of accurate voter rolls.
The lawsuit, filed by Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon and the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, stems from a complaint by a family member of a noncitizen in Orange County who allegedly received an unsolicited mail-in ballot despite not being eligible to vote.
In response to the complaint, the DOJ requested records from the registrar’s office showing how many voter registrations were canceled since January 2020 due to individuals failing to meet citizenship requirements. The department also sought related documents, including the voting histories of noncitizens who were removed from voter rolls.
While OCR provided portions of the requested information, it redacted personal identifying details such as driver’s license numbers, voter identification numbers, language preferences, and signature images, citing protections under California state law.
The DOJ, however, maintains that federal law overrides state restrictions in this case. The department argues that under the 1993 National Voter Registration Act (NVRA), jurisdictions are required to maintain accurate voter registration lists and to make records available for public inspection, with limited exceptions.
After OCR declined to provide unredacted records, citing California law and the 2002 Help America Vote Act, the DOJ filed its lawsuit, which seeks to compel full compliance.
The lawsuit does not specify how many noncitizens may have been registered, removed, or participated in elections, leaving questions about the scale of the issue unanswered.
The Orange County Registrar of Voters has declined to comment, citing the ongoing litigation.
The case comes amid growing national debates over voter eligibility and election integrity. In nearby San Francisco, noncitizens have been allowed to vote in school board elections since 2016. Last year, a ballot measure in Santa Ana, located in Orange County, proposed allowing illegal immigrants to vote in municipal elections, though the measure ultimately failed.
The DOJ’s lawsuit highlights ongoing tensions between state and federal authorities over voter list maintenance and access to election records — a dispute likely to draw continued attention as the 2024 election cycle approaches.
