A New Mexico federal judge has ruled that election authorities in that state discriminated against an election integrity organization when it refused the group access to voter rolls in their effort to ensure the records are free of inconsistencies and the potential for fraud.
“The Court concludes that defendants violated Voter Reference [Foundation]’s rights under the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States by acting with viewpoint discriminatory purpose in withholding publicly available State voter data from Voter Reference,” U.S. District Court Judge James O. Browning said, in an Aug. 30 judicial opinion.
“The Court enjoins the defendants from engaging in any future viewpoint discrimination against Voter Reference related to Voter Reference’s requests for State voter data; and enjoins the defendants, their agents, employees, and all persons acting in active concert or participation with them, from enforcing the Use Restrictions and Data Sharing Ban against Voter Reference, its agents and others similarly-situated.”
The litigation in question, brought by Voter Reference Foundation against New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez and New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver, dates back two-and-a-half years and concerns Voter Reference’s efforts to examine the state’s voter rolls for irregularities.
Voter Reference and similar organizations say accessing this information is critical for making certain that voter databases are accurate and protected against erroneous information, when elections are held.
Meanwhile, election officials in several states like New Mexico, which oppose the efforts of Voter Reference, say voter registration lists could be obtained by bad actors and subsequently, individuals identified on those lists could be disenfranchised from voting entirely.
Though providing voter registration information for voters in a given state, Voter Reference’s website does not list whom people voted for and further preserves confidentiality under a program that shields victims of domestic violence or stalking.
Additionally, addresses of more than 100 elected or appointed officials in New Mexico, Republicans and Democrats alike, also remain confidential in Voter Reference’s database, due to a separate safety program put into effect after drive-by shootings at the homes of legislators occurred in Albuquerque, in December 2022 and January 2023.
Voter Reference currently provides searchable database information for voters in 32 states and the District of Columbia. Leading its efforts is Gina Swoboda, both Chair of the Arizona Republican Party and organizer of former President Donald Trump’s 2020 re-election campaign in Arizona.
When first filing its lawsuit, Voter Reference disabled its voter database in New Mexico—and after the recent ruling gave the green-light to the access of such information, reinstated it.
Browning found that the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 “pre-empts the State’s Data Sharing Ban and Use Restrictions,” and explained any restrictions to the contrary served as a “direct ban on core political speech in violation of the First Amendment.”
“Public interest in securing the statutory guarantees of federal law regarding the transparency of elections and ensuring that Voter Reference may promote this transparency free from viewpoint discrimination, is a boon to the public and furthers the objectives of federal law. In short, this injunction will not affect adversely the public interest,” Browning said.
A spokesperson for the New Mexico Department of Justice, Lauren Rodriguez, said state prosecutors will appeal Browning’s ruling.