The Roger Raèl | The Raton Range
SANTA FE, N.M. — A federal judge has dismissed a U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit seeking New Mexico’s complete voter-registration database, ruling federal officials failed to provide a factual basis for demanding protected information belonging to more than 1.4 million registered voters.
Senior U.S. District Judge Judith C. Herrera dismissed the case Tuesday, July 14, after reviewing the Justice Department’s attempt to obtain the state’s full, unredacted voter-registration list.
The requested records included voters’ names, addresses and full dates of birth, along with driver’s license numbers, state identification numbers and partial Social Security numbers.
The statewide database includes registrations from Raton, Springer and communities throughout Colfax County.
New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver provided the Justice Department with the publicly available version of the voter list but refused to release information protected from public disclosure under state law.
Herrera found that the Justice Department explained its general purpose for seeking the records but failed to identify facts suggesting New Mexico had violated the National Voter Registration Act or the Help America Vote Act.
The department also failed to explain why it needed each voter’s unredacted personal information to determine whether New Mexico was properly maintaining its voter rolls.
The Justice Department sued New Mexico in December as part of a nationwide effort to obtain complete voter-registration files from states that refused to provide protected information.
Attorney General Pamela Bondi said when the lawsuit was filed that accurate voter rolls are essential to fair elections and public confidence. The department argued federal election laws authorize it to inspect records and determine whether states are properly removing outdated or ineligible registrations.
Herrera’s decision did not declare New Mexico’s voter rolls perfect, nor did it prevent state, county or federal officials from investigating credible evidence of illegal voting.
The court instead ruled that federal officials must provide a legally sufficient factual basis before obtaining protected information belonging to every registered voter in the state.
What the ruling means in Colfax County
The decision creates no immediate change in how Colfax County residents register or vote.
It does not alter polling places, early voting, absentee voting, election dates, or voter qualifications.
New Mexico voters must still be U.S. citizens, residents of the state, and at least 18 years old. Federal law also prohibits noncitizens from voting in federal elections.
The Colfax County clerk and secretary of state remain responsible for maintaining voter-registration records and canceling registrations when required by law.
That includes updating records after voters die, move, or otherwise become ineligible.
The ruling also does not prevent law enforcement from investigating a suspicious registration, absentee-ballot request or completed ballot when officials have evidence that a crime may have occurred.
For local voters, the immediate result is that private information contained in the statewide database will not be released under the Justice Department demand rejected by the court.
Past case raised concerns over deceased voters
New Mexico has previously dealt with allegations involving absentee ballots requested in the names of deceased voters.
In 2016, a Bernalillo County grand jury indicted former state Senate candidate Carlos Villanueva after authorities alleged he requested and possessed absentee ballots in the names of recently deceased voters.
The allegations involved activity before the 2014 election. Villanueva said he did not intend to cast the ballots and claimed he was testing weaknesses in the election system.
The charges were later dismissed.
The case did not result in a conviction, did not establish that illegal ballots were counted, and did not prove widespread voter fraud in New Mexico.
It also did not involve Colfax County.
The case remains relevant to the public debate because it shows why election officials must investigate suspicious ballot requests and regularly compare voter-registration information with reliable death and address records.
It does not prove that New Mexico’s current statewide voter list contains fraudulent registrations, deceased voters who cast ballots or noncitizens registered to vote.
It also does not establish that the Justice Department’s broad demand for every voter’s private information met federal legal requirements.
A targeted investigation based on a specific ballot request is different from a statewide demand involving the protected information of more than 1.4 million people.
That distinction was central to Herrera’s decision.
Privacy and election integrity
Republicans and other election-integrity advocates have argued that federal access to voter data could help identify duplicate registrations, deceased voters, people who have moved, and individuals who may not be legally eligible to vote.
New Mexico officials have argued that voter-list maintenance can be performed without handing the federal government protected information such as full birth dates, driver’s license numbers and partial Social Security numbers.
Toulouse Oliver said safeguards around that information exist to protect voters from identity theft and other personal harm.
New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez said the Justice Department demanded private records without presenting evidence that New Mexico had violated federal election law.
Herrera found that the department’s demand letter failed to meet a requirement under the Civil Rights Act of 1960 that federal officials state both the purpose and factual basis for seeking election records.
The case was dismissed with prejudice.
That means the Justice Department cannot simply amend the same complaint to repair a defect contained in the original demand letter.
The decision leaves both sides of the public debate intact.
New Mexico and its 33 county clerks must maintain accurate voter rolls, remove registrations when required and investigate credible evidence of illegal voting.
The federal government must follow the law and provide an adequate factual basis before obtaining private information belonging to every registered voter in the state.
The Villanueva case shows that allegations involving deceased voters deserve investigation.
Its dismissal also shows why allegations should not be presented as proof unless they are established through evidence and a final court result.
For Colfax County residents, voting procedures remain unchanged, and their protected voter information remains outside the Justice Department’s reach under the demand rejected by the court.
Follow The Raton Range for continuing coverage of elections, public records, and government accountability affecting Colfax County.
