RICHMOND, Va. — The Biden administration has filed a lawsuit against the State of Virginia and its top election officials, accusing them of violating federal law by removing noncitizens from voter rolls within 90 days of the upcoming federal election, according to the Department of Justice.
The lawsuit, filed Friday, challenges the actions of Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and the Virginia State Board of Elections, citing violations of the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) of 1993. Specifically, the Justice Department argues that Virginia’s recent efforts to purge noncitizens from its voter lists, ordered by Youngkin in August, occurred during the “Quiet Period,” a federally mandated timeframe in which such systematic removals are prohibited.
Section 8(c)(2) of the NVRA, also known as the Quiet Period Provision, forbids states from conducting large-scale voter list maintenance within 90 days of a federal election. The DOJ argues that Virginia’s actions not only violate this provision but also risk disenfranchising eligible voters who may be mistakenly removed and left with insufficient time to restore their registration.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division emphasized the significance of the Quiet Period. “By canceling voter registrations within 90 days of Election Day, Virginia places qualified voters in jeopardy of being removed from the rolls and creates the risk of confusion for the electorate,” Clarke said in a statement.
Governor Youngkin responded sharply to the lawsuit, defending his administration’s actions as lawful enforcement of a 2006 statute that requires the removal of noncitizens from voter rolls. “With less than 30 days until the election, the Biden-Harris Department of Justice is filing an unprecedented lawsuit against me and the Commonwealth of Virginia for appropriately enforcing a 2006 law,” Youngkin said in a statement. “Virginians—and Americans—will see this for exactly what it is: a desperate attempt to attack the legitimacy of the elections in the Commonwealth.”
The DOJ contends that while states are permitted to remove ineligible voters from registration lists, such systematic removal programs must be completed outside the 90-day window to prevent errors and confusion close to an election. The department cited the risk of removing U.S. citizens by mistake during this period, a concern reflected in recent reports of Virginians mistakenly flagged as noncitizens based on data from the Department of Motor Vehicles.
The lawsuit escalates a legal dispute over voter roll maintenance just weeks before the November 5 general election. Both sides are expected to continue their arguments in the coming days, with voting rights advocates closely monitoring the case.
The investigation remains ongoing.
