Florida Attorney General Sues DHS Over Immigration Records in Fight to Protect Voter Integrity

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According to a press release, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody has taken legal action against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and its Secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas, accusing the agency of refusing to provide immigration records vital to ensuring Florida’s voter rolls remain accurate. The release cites that millions of illegal immigrants entered the country under the Biden administration, and Florida wants to make sure only American citizens are registered to vote. The state recently found individuals on the voter rolls who may not be U.S. citizens, but DHS has refused to share immigration data that would verify their status.

Moody stated, “Voting is a right granted to American citizens—not illegal immigrants or other noncitizens. The Biden-Harris administration has allowed millions of illegal immigrants into the country, and we must ensure that only citizens are on our voter rolls. I am taking legal action against the Department of Homeland Security and Secretary Mayorkas to ensure Florida is able to maintain the integrity of our state’s voter rolls.”

Florida Secretary of State Cory Byrd also weighed in, highlighting that the state's constitution clearly restricts voting to citizens. “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.

The lawsuit seeks to force DHS to comply with a request made by the Florida Department of State for immigration data, which would verify the citizenship or immigration status of registered voters. Despite being required to respond to such inquiries under the Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act, DHS has denied Florida’s request, as well as similar requests from other states.

Florida is now asking the courts to compel DHS to provide the requested information and ensure that the state has the tools necessary to maintain the integrity of its elections.

The full complaint can be found here.