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Must New York give the U.S. its voter list with ID numbers?

United States v. Board Of Elections of the State of New York

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At a glance

The Justice Department sued for New York's full voter list, including license numbers and partial Social Security numbers. A judge dismissed the suit in July 2026; the U.S. has appealed.

  1. What happened · 5 steps
    1. U.S. sues after New York shares only the public listSept 2025

      The U.S. says New York's board split on its demand and sent only the public list, without license or Social Security digits.

    2. New York and voting groups move to dismissDec 2025

      New York, three board members, the NAACP, and the League of Women Voters asked the court to throw out the suit.

    3. Judge dismisses the suit with prejudiceJuly 2026

      The court held that none of the three federal laws cited entitles the U.S. to the full list.

    4. United States appealsJuly 2026

      The U.S. asked the Second Circuit to review the dismissal; the appeal is on an expedited track.

    5. Appeal briefing completedOct 2026

      The U.S. filed its reply brief, and the court proposed argument for the week of February 15, 2027.

  2. Suit dismissed; New York need not hand over list

    The judgment rejects the demand for the full list, but the Second Circuit could revive it on appeal.

  3. Still open

    Whether the Second Circuit upholds or reverses the dismissal.

Where it stands

Appeal to the Second Circuit

Briefing is complete; argument proposed for the week of Feb 15, 2027. · July 23, 2026

The district court dismissed the case for good; the Second Circuit is now reviewing that judgment.

Follow what's happening

  1. U.S. files suit

    Sept 25, 2025

    The U.S. sued for the full voter list under three federal laws.

  2. Motions to dismiss

    Dec 30, 2025

    New York, three board members, and two voting groups sought dismissal.

  3. Suit dismissed

    July 10, 2026

    The court dismissed every claim with prejudice and entered judgment.

  4. Appeal to the Second Circuit

    July 23, 2026

    Briefing is complete; argument proposed for the week of Feb 15, 2027.

The parties

United States

Plaintiff; appellant

The Justice Department's Civil Rights Division

Wants

New York's full, unredacted voter list

Key arguments

  • The 1960 Civil Rights Act lets it demand the list

    Rejected; on appeal. Final ruling. The court held the list is not a record that law covers.

  • Voter registration law requires the list's release

    Rejected; on appeal. Final ruling. The court read the law to cover list-upkeep records, not the list itself.

  • HAVA lets it get the list to check list upkeep

    Rejected; on appeal. Final ruling. The court found no disclosure right and no alleged violation.

  • ID numbers are needed to avoid false matches

    Not yet addressed by the court

Represented by

U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division; U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of New York

New York and its Board of Elections

Defendants and intervenors; appellees

New York, its election board, NAACP, League of Women Voters

Wants

Dismissal of the demand for the full list

Key arguments

  • The voter list isn't a record the 1960 Act covers

    Accepted; on appeal. Final ruling

  • The NVRA reaches upkeep records, not the list

    Accepted; on appeal. Final ruling

  • HAVA contains no right to demand records

    Accepted; on appeal. Final ruling

  • Privacy laws protect voters' ID numbers

    Not reached. The court did not need to decide the privacy-law arguments.

Represented by

New York State Office of the Attorney General; Harris Beach Murtha Cullina PLLC; Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel; Elias Law Group; Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law; Campaign Legal Center

Supporting defendants and intervenors; appellees: Democratic National Committee and 17 states, through their attorneys general

Content snapshot as of .