Federal judge blocks Virginia's voter purging ahead of election
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People early voting at a polling station in Arlington on Sept. 20. Photo: AFP via Getty Images
A federal judge ruled Friday that Virginia purged 1,600 people from the state's rolls too close to Election Day.
Why it matters: Virginia is now required to add those voters back to the registration list, per statements from advocates and Gov. Youngkin.
The big picture: The order is bound to feed the unsubstantiated claims from Republicans that non-citizens are voting in presidential elections and influencing outcomes — since Virginia is saying they removed these voters for not being U.S. citizens.
- Election officials have told The Washington Post that most of the 6,303 names purged from Virginia's voter rolls during Youngkin's term stemmed from paperwork errors at the DMV.
- That could look like people simply forgetting to check off the citizenship box.
Driving the news: Shortly after the ruling, Youngkin and Attorney General Jason Miyares vowed to immediately appeal the decision, "all the way to the Supreme Court, if necessary," Miyares wrote in a statement.
- The decision also yielded a response from former President Trump on X, who called it "a totally unacceptable travesty" and an "ILLEGAL ORDER" before telling Virginia Republicans to keep voting early.
- Miyares filed an emergency motion on Friday to block the judge's ruling while Virginia appeals the decision.
- A Richmond-based federal court denied the appeal on Sunday, leaving the program temporarily halted.
Between the lines: Judge Patricia Giles, who blocked Virginia's voter purging Friday, is a Biden appointee.
- But the federal judge who ordered Alabama to temporarily halt its voter removal program earlier this month, was appointed by Trump.
Catch up quick: This ruling comes after the Department of Justice sued Virginia this month, alleging that Virginia violated a federal law by canceling voter registrations within 90 days of a presidential election.
- Youngkin signed an executive order in August requiring daily, instead of monthly, updates to state voter lists to remove ineligible voters.
Zoom in: Christine Rabassa, a Henrico resident and lifelong citizen, was among those removed from the voter rolls after Youngkin's order, per sworn statements reported by The Times-Dispatch.
- Rabassa found out when she tried to vote.
What's next: The order temporarily halts Virginia's systematic voter removal program and requires Virginia to send affected voters a notification saying they still have the right to vote if they're a U.S. citizen.
Go deeper: Virginia is the latest state to face accusations of illegally purging voters