U.S. Judge Dismisses DOJ Suit Seeking Oregon Voter Rolls
Judge Mustafa Kasubhai dismissed the Justice Department's suit seeking Oregon's unredacted voter rolls of 3.8 million registrants.
Overview
U.S. District Judge Mustafa Kasubhai dismissed the Justice Department lawsuit and indicated he will file a written opinion in the coming days regarding the demand for Oregon's voter registration list of nearly 3.8 million voters, officials confirmed.
The dismissal follows the DOJ's September demand for unredacted voter rolls containing names, addresses, birth dates, driver's license numbers and partial Social Security numbers, a step the state contested as legally unsupported.
Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield said in a statement that "the court dismissed this case because the federal government never met the legal standard to get these records in the first place," officials confirmed.
The DOJ has sought similar voter data from at least 23 states and Washington, D.C., and has sued 24 jurisdictions, records show, prompting debates about use of the data for criminal and immigration investigations according to prior government documents.
Judge Kasubhai ordered lawyers for the DOJ and Oregon to explain the relevance of a letter from Attorney General Pam Bondi to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz in interpreting the government's basis for requesting the records, with the next court filing expected shortly.
Analysis
Center-leaning sources frame the story as a legal and privacy rebuke to the Trump administration, using evaluative language ('setback'), prioritizing state officials' privacy-focused quotes, and citing watchdog findings (Brennan Center, CBS) to suggest motive. They foreground judicial rulings and pattern-of-lawsuits context, minimizing DOJ's fraud-prevention claims.
Sources (3)
FAQ
The DOJ sued Oregon in September 2025, alleging violations of the National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, and Civil Rights Act of 1960, to obtain unredacted voter rolls with names, addresses, birth dates, driver's license numbers, and partial Social Security numbers for voter list maintenance investigations.
Judge Mustafa Kasubhai dismissed the DOJ's lawsuit in an oral ruling, stating the DOJ failed to meet the legal standard for the records, with a written opinion to follow soon; he noted the final written decision may differ.
The DOJ has sought voter data from at least 23 states and Washington, D.C., and filed lawsuits against 24 jurisdictions.
Judge Kasubhai ordered explanations on the relevance of Bondi's letter to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, which linked voter rolls to immigration enforcement and raised concerns about the DOJ's true motives beyond voter law enforcement.
Oregon provides redacted voter lists including names, addresses, political parties, and birth years, but excludes full birth dates, driver's license numbers, and Social Security numbers.
History
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