Updated · Letters from an American | Heather Cox Richardson · Jun 23
Judge Sooknanan Blocks 14%-Error SAVE Checks on State Voter Rolls
Updated
Updated · Letters from an American | Heather Cox Richardson · Jun 23
Judge Sooknanan Blocks 14%-Error SAVE Checks on State Voter Rolls
3 articles · Updated · Letters from an American | Heather Cox Richardson · Jun 23
Summary
A federal judge barred the Trump administration from using the SAVE immigration database to screen state voter rolls, ruling the effort endangered voting rights and citizens’ privacy.
At least 14% of SAVE matches wrongly flagged legal voters as noncitizens, according to prior reporting cited in the case, undercutting the administration’s push to force states to submit their rolls.
Sparkle Sooknanan said the federal government had "knowingly trampled" Americans’ privacy rights in a way that threatens the right to vote, extending scrutiny she had already applied to the administration’s voter-data program.
The ruling lands amid broader fights over election administration, including reports that federal officials raided an Ohio voter-participation group while the intelligence office sat on warnings about outdated voting-machine software.
How can technology verify voter eligibility without compromising citizen privacy and fundamental rights?
Beyond voting, what are the hidden risks of linking all our separate government data together?
With conflicting federal and state laws, who ultimately governs the privacy of your personal data?
Trump’s National Voter Database Blocked: Court Cites Privacy Violations and Threat to 21 Million Voters
Overview
On June 22, 2026, U.S. District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan blocked the Trump administration’s plan to create a national voter-screening database. The judge found the system was haphazard and unlawfully collected private information from millions of Americans, aiming to remove non-citizens from voter rolls. She ruled that the federal government had knowingly violated citizens’ privacy rights, threatening the sacred right to vote. This decision immediately stopped the use of the DHS SAVE system for a national voter database and prevented further voter roll purges, highlighting the judiciary’s role in protecting privacy and election integrity.