Florida sues Biden-Harris administration for refusing to verify whether voters on its rolls are US citizens

The state of Florida filed a lawsuit against the Biden-Harris administration, alleging that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) refused to provide information necessary to ensure the integrity and immigration status of voters on its voter rolls.

According to the lawsuit, filed by state Attorney General Ashley Moody, The Sunshine State seeks to ensure that only U.S. citizens can vote in this election.

DHS required to respond to inquiries from state governments

The document, first obtained exclusively by Fox, argues that DHS has an obligation under federal law to respond to inquiries from state or local governments about the immigration status of any person within its jurisdiction when that inquiry is related to lawful purposes, such as verification of voting eligibility.

The lawsuit contends that the state of Florida has a duty to "maintain accurate and up-to-date voter records," a goal that, according to the state, is frustrated by the federal government's refusal to provide the necessary data.

The state has had difficulty verifying immigration status

Florida has the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program administered by DHS, which allows states to verify the immigration and citizenship status of people on their voter rolls. However, the lawsuit claims that the state has had difficulty verifying the immigration status of some individuals.

According to the lawsuit, the Florida Department of State has identified several people for whom it has evidence that they are not citizens, but has been unable to complete the verifications due to a lack of response from DHS. Florida claims it has attempted to obtain verification directly from DHS and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), but its requests have been denied.

As the lawsuit noted, "Florida has identified a subset of individuals for whom it cannot verify citizenship or immigration status through SAVE and for whom DHS refuses to verify citizenship or immigration status through other means."

'We must ensure that only citizens are on our voter rolls'

In a statement to Fox, Attorney General Moody expressed concern about the potential influence of non-citizens on elections:

Florida's Secretary of State Cord Byrd also weighed in on the case, stressing that the Florida Constitution clearly states that only citizens have the right to vote in elections: "The Florida Constitution is clear that only citizens can vote in our elections. Florida is calling on the federal government to dismantle the barriers blocking the states from obtaining critical information needed to prevent non-citizens from voting in our elections. ... We are going to prevail in our effort to uphold the law and uphold the Constitution’s guarantee of one citizen, one vote."

Ohio, Alabama and Virginia filed similar lawsuits

Ohio filed a similar lawsuit earlier, seeking access to multiple DHS databases. Other states, such as Alabama and Virginia, have also attempted to clean their voter rolls of non-citizens but have run into obstacles from the federal government.

In the Alabama and Virginia cases, the Justice Department has sued the states, arguing that their efforts violate the Quiet Period Provision, which prevents the removal of voters from the rolls in the 90 days leading up to an election.