Virginia Republican officials have petitioned the US Supreme Court to permit the state to implement a program aimed at removing suspected noncitizens from the voter rolls. This case has gained political significance as former President Donald Trump and other Republicans have used it to push a false narrative of widespread illegal voting. The appeal comes amidst a flurry of election-related lawsuits reaching the Supreme Court in the lead-up to the presidential election next week.
With the election already underway and millions of early votes cast, there is a surge in litigation surrounding voting procedures. A recent poll revealed that 56% of registered voters have little to no trust in the Supreme Court's ability to make correct decisions on legal matters related to the election. The poll also highlighted a political divide, with Trump supporters showing more trust in the court compared to Harris supporters.
The case in Virginia involves an order signed by Governor Glenn Youngkin in August, requiring election officials to cross-reference residents who self-identified as noncitizens with the voter rolls and remove any matches. The program resulted in approximately 1,600 individuals being removed from the voter rolls, with state officials claiming these individuals had admitted to not being citizens.
However, the Biden administration and voting rights groups challenged the program, arguing that some eligible US citizens had their registrations revoked under the initiative. Both a US District Court and a three-judge panel of the 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals, all appointed by Democratic presidents, swiftly blocked Virginia from implementing the program.
The legal battle revolves around the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, which prohibits states from making significant changes to voting rolls within 90 days of a federal election. The Biden administration and voting groups contended that Youngkin's order violated this law by instituting a systematic program during the 'quiet period' mandated by federal law.
Despite claims by Trump and Republicans about illegal voting, documented instances of noncitizens voting are exceedingly rare. The appeal to the Supreme Court by Virginia election officials rests partly on a legal theory known as the 'Purcell principle,' which cautions against last-minute alterations to voting rules before an election to avoid federal court entanglement in election disputes.
