A federal judge has ordered Alabama’s Republican secretary of state to reverse a program that purged over 3,000 names from the state’s voter rolls. The judge agreed with the Biden administration's argument that the purge occurred too close to the election.
The ruling, issued by US District Judge Anna Manasco, stated that federal law mandates states to complete systematic purges of ineligible persons from voter rolls no later than ninety days before a federal election. However, Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen initiated a purge program just eighty-four days before the 2024 General Election, missing the deadline.
Judge Manasco highlighted that Secretary Allen's purge program included thousands of US citizens, along with a smaller number of noncitizens who are ineligible to vote. Allen referred all individuals to the state’s attorney general for criminal investigation.
This decision is a significant win for the US Justice Department and several voters in Alabama who sued Allen, alleging the unlawful removal of 3,251 names from the state’s registration lists. The ruling comes amidst Republican efforts to address noncitizen voting as a key issue leading up to the 2024 election, despite the fact that voting in US elections by noncitizens is illegal and rare.
Judge Manasco specified that the injunction will remain in effect until after the 2024 election, providing a safeguard against further unauthorized purges of voter rolls in Alabama.
