Federal judge dismisses Trump administration attempt to access Michigan voter rolls

Judge Hala Jarbou, an appointee of President Donald Trump, has ruled that there is no federal law requiring states to turn over voter registration lists to the federal government, dismissing a case brought against Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson. 

In an opinion released Tuesday out of the federal district court in the Western District of Michigan, Jarbou wrote that the three federal statutes in question —the Help America Vote Act, the National Voter Registration Act and the Civil Rights Act of 1960 — “do not allow the United States to obtain the records at issue in this case.”

The lawsuit was filed after the U.S. Department of Justice requested in July 2025 detailed information about every voter in Michigan, including their 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. In September, the state informed the federal government that it would only provide the public voter registration list, which does not include dates of birth, driver’s license numbers or social security numbers, citing privacy concerns for voters. 

“This ruling is a victory for the citizens of Michigan and the rule of law,” said Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, the named defendant in the case. “Once again, a federal judge has blocked this administration from abusing their authority and attempting to illegally intimidate state officials into handing over citizens’ personal information. Today’s decision affirms that the law is on our side.”

There is “simply no basis,” the opinion continued in dismissing the DOJ’s claims around the Help America Vote Act, “for the United States’s suggestion that it can file a HAVA claim, allege no violations of HAVA, and obtain information to support its (as-yet-nonexistent) claim via discovery.” As for the Civil Rights Act, “the records requested by the United States do not fall under the CRA’s disclosure provision.”

In terms of the National Voter Registration Act, the judge ruled that requiring disclosure of the information that the DOJ is seeking “would contradict the NVRA’s objective of increasing voter participation… because the risk of having one’s personal information misused will deter people from registering to vote” and “would potentially cause the statute to impose an unconstitutional burden on the right to vote guaranteed by the First Amendment.”

“The Trump administration attempted to unlawfully force Michigan into handing over private, sensitive information of millions of voters with no legal basis, and I am relieved that the Court dismissed this case,” said Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel in a press release. “We will not be bullied into violating the privacy rights of residents, and my office will continue to protect the personal data of Michiganders.”

The Department of Justice declined to comment on the ruling.