A federal judge cleared the way for President Donald Trump to move forward with an executive order that tightens mail-in voting rules and calls for citizenship checks of voter rolls.
US District Judge Carl Nichols ruled that Democrats failed to show they currently have standing to challenge the order or that they have suffered harm warranting a preliminary injunction.
“Given that the Executive Order does not command Plaintiffs to do anything, and that no agency has yet acted pursuant to the Order in a way that could harm Plaintiffs, they have not suffered any harm at present.”
Democrats argued that provisions requiring the creation of state-by-state citizenship lists to review voter rolls could disenfranchise eligible voters if the records contain errors.
Nichols rejected that argument for now, writing that any potential inaccuracies remain speculative and noting that the executive order requires procedures allowing individuals to access and correct their information if necessary.
“It remains speculative whether the State Citizenship Lists, if and when they are initially compiled, will contain inaccuracies.”
The court also rejected claims that sharing voter information among government agencies would violate privacy rights.
“Plaintiffs fail to demonstrate that such action … would cause a harm sufficient to establish Article III standing.”
The decision allows Trump’s executive order to remain in effect while the legal challenge moves forward.
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Source: Sharyl Attkisson
