Lawsuit says state relied on a flawed federal database and ignored citizenship records

Voting Rights Groups Sue Texas Over Effort to Remove “Potential Noncitizens” From Voter Rolls

Voting rights organizations have filed a federal lawsuit accusing Texas election officials of unlawfully targeting naturalized citizens for removal from the voter rolls after the state flagged thousands of registered voters as “potential noncitizens” using a federal immigration database.

The complaint, filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Austin, argues that the Texas Secretary of State’s Office failed to check its own records—such as citizenship documents provided to the Department of Public Safety during driver’s license applications—before directing counties to investigate 2,724 voters identified through the Department of Homeland Security’s SAVE system. Advocates say the database is unreliable for determining citizenship and that its use violates the National Voter Registration Act.

The Campaign Legal Center brought the suit on behalf of LULAC, Texas LULAC, LULAC Council 102, and Common Cause. They are asking the court to block the state from removing any voter solely based on SAVE data and to require more rigorous, uniform verification before counties act on state‑issued lists.

They also want anyone already removed to be reinstated unless officials can conclusively prove they are not U.S. citizens.

Texas officials have not yet responded to the lawsuit. A separate federal challenge to the SAVE system itself remains pending.