Texas Sends 18.4 Million Voter Records to Justice Department

Texas officials transferred the state's complete voter registration roll, containing data on approximately 18.4 million voters, to the U.S. Department of Justice on December 23. The shared data includes sensitive identifying information, such as dates of birth, driver's license numbers, and the last four digits of Social Security numbers.

Greg Abbott, the Governor of Texas, confirmed the transfer as part of an effort to ensure only U.S. citizens vote in the state. The action followed an October report from Secretary of State Jane Nelson, which identified more than 2,700 potential illegal immigrants on the voter rolls. The Justice Department is attempting to compile a national voter database to enforce federal laws regarding list maintenance and the removal of ineligible voters.

While Texas and 12 other states voluntarily complied with the request, the Justice Department has sued 23 other states and Washington, D.C., for refusing to provide their rolls. The Democratic National Committee has condemned the move as a federal power grab, arguing the transfer may violate the National Voter Registration Act. DNC officials warned that the process risks privacy violations and the improper purging of eligible voters.