In court, the Department of Justice (DOJ) acknowledged that it plans to share the voter registration data it gets from states with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The plan is to run the voter file through the SAVE system, a U.S. citizenship check housed at DHS. Many question the integrity and reliability of the DHS’ SAVE system, as some U.S. citizens have been inaccurately flagged as non-citizens.

The DOJ has yet to make any public announcements about a data sharing agreement or host a forum for public comment, which is required under the Privacy Act before data is shared.

In January, Republicans reintroduced a revised version of the SAVE Act, the SAVE America Act, which passed the House on February 11 and is currently under consideration in the Senate. Trump has declared that it should be Congress’ “number one priority” ahead of the midterm elections, as the voter suppression measure will “guarantee” Republican victory in the midterm elections.

Here's everything you need to know.

The Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments in Watson v. Republican National Committee. A ruling is expected in June, and if the Court rejects Mississippi’s mail ballot law, it could have nationwide implications for mail voting. Mississippi currently allows mail ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted if they are received within five days after the election. At least 18 other states, including New York, have similar grace periods for ballots postmarked by Election Day.

The case comes as the Trump administration continues efforts to restrict mail voting nationwide.

On his podcast this week, Steve Bannon suggested that Trump deployed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to major U.S. airports as part of a “test run” for stationing agents at polling sites this November, despite the DHS Assistant Secretary for Election Integrity claiming there “will be no ICE presence at polling locations.” The Democratic National Committee (DNC) filed a lawsuit on March 10 to compel the government to say whether it plans to deploy armed federal officers in this year’s elections.

The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear a challenge to New York’s new law that moves most local elections to even-numbered years to align with state and federal races. The Court’s ruling comes after New York's Court of Appeals, ruled that the law is constitutional in October.

Congressional districts are usually redrawn once per decade after the census, but a mid-decade redistricting push led by Trump and Texas Republicans has sparked a nationwide battle over congressional maps. Both parties are now pursuing redistricting efforts in multiple states ahead of the 2026 elections, with control of Congress hanging in the balance. View the latest map and state-level redistricting updates here.

The Supreme Court temporarily blocked a New York court order requiring the state to redraw the lines of its 11th Congressional District. The ruling effectively pauses a New York trial court’s ruling that claimed the district’s lines “unlawfully diluted the voting strength of Black and Latino communities in violation of the state constitution.” As a result, the 2024 lines will remain in place for the 2026 midterm elections.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has requested documents from the Ulster County Board of Elections as part of an “ongoing investigation.” Although the DOJ has not provided additional details, the request comes amid the president’s ongoing attacks on mail voting and election integrity and calls for increased federal control over elections.

Black and Hispanic Residents in Newburgh challenged the Town’s method for electing Board members, alleging dilution of minority voting power under the New York Voting Rights Act (NYVRA). This ruling by the NY Court of Appeals overturns a trial court’s ruling that found the NYVRA to be unconstitutional. In addition to upholding the NYVRA more broadly, the ruling impacts similar lawsuits in both Mt. Pleasant and Cheektowaga.

A federal court permanently blocked implementation of a Trump Administration executive order that sought to impose documentary proof of citizenship requirements. The court ruled that the president lacks the authority to unilaterally alter election procedures, since those powers rest with Congress and the states.

The NY Republican State Committee has filed a lawsuit challenging New York State’s Even Year Election Law, which aims to boost turnout for local elections by aligning them with state and federal elections. The law was upheld in mid-October by the New York Court of Appeals.

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) is suing the New York State Board of Elections for failing to provide an un-redacted copy of the state’s voter registration list, complete with voters’ date of birth and address. The NYSBOE declined the DOJ’s request, citing state election laws and federal privacy provisions.

The DOJ has now sued 29 states, plus Washington, D.C., for access state voter files. Stay up to date with the latest updates on Democracy Docket.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services issued an announcement that nongovernmental groups are barred from registering new voters at naturalization ceremonies. Only state and local election officials are now permitted to register voters at these ceremonies. 

At a naturalization ceremony in Ulster, the League of Women Voters continued to register new voters. Despite the new policy, the group’s Mid-Hudson Region chapter attended a ceremony at SUNY Ulster where they registered 14 new voters.

In a case stemming from North Dakota's 2021 redistricting plan, the Supreme Court is being asked to decide whether citizens can sue under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.

The justices paused the Eighth Circuit's ruling from taking effect while the court decides whether to hear the case. But, if the Court ultimately upholds that decision nationwide, it would represent the most significant rollback of voting rights since Shelby County v. Holder in 2013.

The AZ Court of Appeals dismissed a lawsuit by the state GOP and anti-voting groups that sought to restrict how mail-in ballot signatures are verified. The court found the plaintiffs lacked standing, and that the matter was one of partisan disagreement.

Democracy Docket writes: "With nearly 90% of Arizonans voting by mail, the ruling preserves a flexible signature verification system that prevents wrongful ballot rejections, while also making clear that courts won’t indulge partisan lawsuits..."

In a major win for PA voters, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a ruling requiring Pennsylvania to count mail-in ballots that are undated or wrongly dated. In a unanimous opinion, the court found the date requirement violated the First and Fourteenth Amendments, noting it has led to thousands of ballots being wrongly discarded in past elections.

Judge D. Brooks Smith stressed that democracy is about counting votes, not disqualifying them on technicalities. 

Heather Honey, a prominent election conspiracy theorist, has been appointed as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Elections Integrity at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Honey is the founder of Pennsylvania Fair Elections and has been involved in efforts to undermine the 2020 election, remove registered voters from states rolls and spread election-based lies and conspiracies. Her appointment raises concerns about the growing influence of election denial networks within federal agencies.

The Supreme Court will hear oral argument for Callais v. Landry on October 15, a high-stakes Louisiana redistricting case that could upend the Voting Rights Act.

By ordering supplementary briefs and asking whether majority-minority districts themselves violate the Constitution, the conservative-majority Court signaled it may use the case to upend Section 2 of the VRA. 

On August 27th, both parties submitted supplemental briefs to the Court, as requested. 

The Department of Homeland Security’s SAVE program, which verifies immigration and citizenship status, is used by some states to help determine voter eligibility. However, SAVE relies on outdated and incomplete databases, raising the risk of misidentifying citizens as noncitizens and prompting erroneous voter purges. The Brennan Center cautions that the “SAVE program should be considered useful, but not definitive, in assessing an individual’s citizenship.”

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) sent a letter to various states, including the New York State Board of Elections, requesting access to the state’s full voter registration rolls and posing questions about how New York is complying with the Help America Vote Act (HAVA). The move represents an unprecedented expansion of federal involvement in elections, which are managed by states.

After sending requesting voter data from states, the DOJ announced that it is “exploring whether they can bring criminal charges against state or local election officials if the Trump administration determines they have not sufficiently safeguarded their computer systems.” The New York Times reports that this exploration is not based on new evidence, data, or legal authority.

A federal judge in Massachusetts has blocked Trump’s executive order requiring documentary proof of citizenship to vote in federal elections, as well as a directive to penalize states that count mail ballots after Election Day.

This marks the second major ruling against the order, building on an April 25th decision in D.C., but goes further by fully blocking the executive order from taking effect until resolution of the case.

A New York state appeals court upheld a 2023 law shifting many local elections to even years, aligning them with state and federal contests.

The unanimous decision reverses a lower court's ruling that deemed the law unconstitutional. The law takes effect in 2025 and impacts several local offices outside of NYC, resulting in shortened terms for some elected officials.

Federal court temporarily blocks President Trump's executive order requiring documentary proof of citizenship when registering to vote.

On April 10th, the House of Representatives passed the SAVE Act -Republicans’ latest attempt to suppress the vote under the pretense of election security.

This bill creates barriers, not solutions by imposing documentary proof-of-citizenship requirements that would disenfranchise millions.

While the SAVE Act is not expected to become federal law, the bill has already spawned copycat legislation in state legislatures across the country.

On March 25th, President Trump issued an executive order seeking greater control over U.S. elections by imposing proof-of-citizenship requirements for voter registration, restricting mail-in ballots, and granting Elon Musk’s DOGE access to sensitive voter data.

The order poses an urgent threat to voting rights and election integrity, but faces multiple legal challenges from Democrats and voting rights groups.

The New York Court of Appeals struck down a law that would have allowed over 800,000 non-citizens to vote in NYC municipal elections. The 6-1 decision reaffirmed lower court rulings that the state constitution limits voting rights to U.S. citizens.

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