Federal Judge Halts Trump Administration's Expanded Voter-Screening Database, Citing Privacy Violations

U.S. District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan ruled on June 22, 2026, that the Trump administration violated federal privacy protections by overhauling a citizen data program, the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program, for aggressive voter roll purging. The judge's order, widely reported on June 23, 2026, halts the use of the expanded data system, asserting that the federal government 'knowingly trampled on the privacy rights of American citizens in a manner that threatens the sacred right to vote.' The ruling found that the revamped system aggregated sensitive personal information and risked disenfranchising eligible voters.