Georgia voter data lawsuit dismissed by federal judge

A federal judge has dismissed a Department of Justice lawsuit seeking to obtain sensitive voter data from Georgia. U.S. District Judge Victoria Marie Calvert ruled that the federal government's attempt to access complete voter rolls, which include birthdates, addresses, and driver's license numbers, violated state law regarding voter confidentiality.

While the Justice Department invoked Title III of the Civil Rights Act to justify the request, Judge Calvert stated that the act does not supersede state privacy laws or apply to non-public records. She noted there was no explicit evidence that Congress intended for the Civil Rights Act to preempt state-level voter privacy protections.

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger maintained that while public portions of the voter rolls have been released, the personal information requested by the federal government remains protected under state law. This ruling follows similar legal efforts by the Trump administration to obtain complete voting lists in other states, with four related cases still pending in Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, and Utah.