DOJ flags 20,000 ‘likely non-citizen’ California voter registrations — privacy groups sue over federal database

THE DAILY BS: HOW MUCH CAN YOU HANDLE?

SPARE ME THE BS (I’ve got things to do).

The Justice Department sued California after identifying more than 20,000 registrations it says likely belong to noncitizens.
Three organizations separately sued over DHS collection of voter records from at least 47 states.
The legal fights concern both voter eligibility and how the federal government collects personal information.

LAY IT ON ME (I’ve got time).

Washington says it found more than 20,000 likely noncitizens on California’s voter rolls. On the same day, privacy organizations went to court over the federal government’s voter-data operation.

And just like that, the election-integrity fight has two new lawsuits and two very different questions.

On October 15, the Justice Department sued California over what it described as more than 20,000 registrations likely belonging to noncitizens.

Attorney General Todd Blanche said: “State-facilitated voter fraud is unacceptable in the United States of America.”

California disputes the government’s approach and says it needs adequate supporting information to assess the flagged registrations.

Separately, the League of Women Voters, Electronic Privacy Information Center and League of United Latin American Citizens filed suit challenging DHS collection and use of voter records from at least 47 states.

The groups allege federal officials are assembling a nationwide database containing sensitive personal information without appropriate legal safeguards.

The two cases show why voter-list verification has become such a contentious issue.

The administration argues that it needs reliable information to enforce election law. The plaintiffs argue that the government’s methods exceed its authority and threaten privacy.

One of these things protects our elections. It seems like an easy choice to me.