Feds denied access to Michigan’s unredacted voter records

(CN) — The federal government does not have the authority under federal election law to demand that Michigan turn over unredacted voter records that contain voters’ personal information, a divided Sixth Circuit panel found Wednesday.

The Cincinnati-based Sixth Circuit’s 2-1 decision turns on key words in the federal statute that refer to voter records that “come into the possession of" the state.

The government had argued that it is entitled to Michigan’s voter records under the Civil Rights Act because the state would have acquired records from voters and then relied on those records in creating the qualified voter file.

But the majority agreed with Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s argument that the state did not “come into possession” of the voter records but instead created them itself. Thus the federal government’s records demand under Title III of the Civil Rights Act does not apply in this case.

“The problem for the government is that it has not requested the records or papers that Benson obtained in creating the qualified voter file — the government has requested the qualified voter file itself. Nothing in Title III allows the government to obtain something that the secretary of state created and established,” U.S. Circuit Judge Andre Mathis, a Joe Biden appointee, wrote for the majority. U.S. Circuit Judge R. Guy Cole Jr., a Bill Clinton appointee, joined Mathis.

The U.S. attorney general has authority under Title III of the Civil Rights Act of 1960 to obtain certain state voting records to enforce federal election law to ensure that the right to vote may be freely exercised. In this case, however, the government invoked Title III to ensure that some people have not voted.

In 2025, President Donald Trump issued the executive order, “Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections,” that directed the U.S. attorney general to enforce of federal laws that restrict non-citizens from registering to vote or voting.

This led to a demand by the attorney general to turn over election records from nearly every state and the District of Columbia. The federal government sued Michigan after the state refused to turn over the records. A federal judge later granted the state’s motion to dismiss.

In letters to Benson, the U.S. attorney general demanded not only the names on Michigan’s voter rolls, but also the dates of birth, partial Social Security numbers, and driver’s license numbers of every registered voter in the state.

Benson, arguing the federal government did not have authority to demand the unredacted records, instead provided a list of voters that is available to the public.

In a dissent, U.S. Circuit Judge John Nalbandian argued that voters’ personal information compiled by the state constitute records subject to the government’s demand.

“Michigan’s voter file assumes the quality of being a record only because it’s composed of individual records that independently satisfy Title III’s ‘come into possession’ requirement,” the Donald Trump appointee wrote. “Therefore, the aggregate file needn’t come into Benson’s possession as a thing-in-itself. The individual records meet the requirement, and that’s enough.”

Michigan officials praised Wednesday’s ruling.

“The federal government continues to show a blatant disregard for voter privacy, but the rule of law has once again prevailed,” state Attorney General Dana Nessel said in a statement. “This invasive demand by the DOJ was a transparent attempt to intimidate and spread fear among voters, but my office will not be bullied by this administration and will always stand up against unlawful actions by the federal government.”

Separately, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer said, “Michigan’s elections are safe and secure, and any attempt to suggest otherwise is an attempt to take away Michiganders’ constitutional right to vote and invade their privacy. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals made the right decision."

The U.S. Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Follow @roxalaird16