Press Contact: media@hispanicfederation.org
Washington, D.C. — Today, the Supreme Court allowed the Trump Administration to resume using its expanded SAVE database to check the citizenship of registered voters, pausing a lower court ruling that found the system violated federal privacy protections. The tool has already made mistakes flagging eligible U.S. citizens as potential noncitizens. In some states, voters flagged by the system have had their registrations canceled. With the midterm elections just weeks away, many voters may not learn they’ve been wrongly removed until they show up to cast a ballot.
Below is a statement from Julietta Lopez, Vice President for Federal Advocacy and Network Engagement.
“The right to vote is the foundation of our democracy, and today’s decision puts that right at risk for millions of eligible Americans, particularly naturalized citizens, Latino voters and low-income voters. Noncitizen voting is already illegal and exceedingly rare, yet the administration is deploying a flawed system with a documented record of errors that is operating without transparency or oversight. The Administration should be working to expand access to eligible voters, not creating another barrier.
Hispanic Federation opposes any policy that makes it harder for eligible citizens to vote, particularly when those policies are imposing a last-minute burden on working families. We urge state election officials to decline using this unreliable tool and call on Congress to enact safeguards against wrongful voter purges. States that put their voters through this system are, at best, forcing them to undergo unnecessary burdens of proving that they are citizens and, at worst, blocking their constitutional rights to participate in the upcoming midterms. All registered voters should check their registration status immediately. Every eligible voter deserves to have their ballot counted, and we will keep fighting to make sure it is.”
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About Hispanic Federation
Hispanic Federation (HF) is a nonprofit membership and advocacy organization, founded in 1990, committed to empowering and advancing the Hispanic community, with a focus on low-income, marginalized, and immigrant Latine. With programs in 43 states and territories, HF’s focus areas include immigration, economic empowerment, civic engagement, disaster relief, philanthropy, education, health, and the environment. HF also maintains ongoing public education campaigns and meets the organizational development needs of its member agencies through grant-making and capacity-building assistance.
