Texas Sends 18.4 Million Voter Records to Justice Department

Texas officials transferred the state's complete voter registration roll, containing data for approximately 18.4 million voters, to the U.S. Department of Justice on December 23. The shared data includes sensitive identifying information, including dates of birth, driver's license numbers, and the last four digits of Social Security numbers. The transfer follows an October audit by the Texas Secretary of State that flagged more than 2,700 potential non-citizens on the rolls.

Greg Abbott, Governor of Texas, confirmed the action and stated the goal is to ensure that only U.S. citizens vote in the state. The Justice Department is seeking similar data from all 50 states as part of a nationwide effort to enforce federal election laws and maintain accurate voter lists. While 13 states voluntarily complied, the federal agency has filed lawsuits against 23 other states and Washington, D.C., for refusing to share their registration lists.

The Democratic National Committee and various voting rights groups condemned the move, characterizing it as a "big government power grab." Critics argue the data transfer could violate the National Voter Registration Act, compromise voter privacy, and lead to the improper purging of eligible citizens from the rolls. Texas provided the data under a memorandum of understanding intended to protect the state's rights under federal law, specifically regarding the 90-day moratorium on systemic voter removals before elections.