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Must Oregon give the U.S. its full, unredacted voter list?

United States v. State of Oregon

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At a glance

The Justice Department sued Oregon for a complete, unredacted copy of its voter registration list. A judge dismissed it in February 2026; the United States appealed, and the Ninth Circuit heard argument in May.

  1. What happened · 5 steps
    1. United States sues OregonSep 2025

      The Justice Department asked the court to order Oregon to hand over its complete, unredacted voter list.

    2. Voters' group joins the defenseDec 2025

      The court let Our Oregon and three Oregon voters join the case as defendants.

    3. Judge dismisses the caseFeb 2026

      The court held none of the three federal laws cited requires the unredacted list, and denied leave to amend.

    4. United States appealsFeb 2026

      The government took the dismissal to the Ninth Circuit, which put the appeal on a fast schedule.

    5. Ninth Circuit hears argumentMay 2026

      A three-judge panel heard argument and took the appeal under submission; no ruling yet.

  2. Oregon need not hand over the full list

    The case is dismissed, so Oregon does not have to give the unredacted list while the appeal is decided.

  3. Still open

    Whether the Ninth Circuit will uphold or reverse the dismissal.

Where it stands

Ninth Circuit argument

Panel heard argument and took the appeal under submission · May 19, 2026

The appeal has been argued and awaits a Ninth Circuit decision.

Follow what's happening

  1. Lawsuit filed

    Sep 16, 2025

    United States sues for Oregon's full voter list

  2. Case dismissed

    Feb 5, 2026

    Court grants the motions to dismiss, without leave to amend

  3. Appeal to the Ninth Circuit

    Feb 25, 2026

    United States appeals the dismissal

  4. Ninth Circuit argument

    May 19, 2026

    Panel heard argument and took the appeal under submission

  5. Ninth Circuit decision

    Not yet

    The panel has not yet ruled

The parties

United States

Plaintiff

The federal government, through the Justice Department

Wants

Oregon's complete, unredacted voter list

Key arguments

  • Voter-registration law requires the full list

    Rejected; under appeal. Final ruling. The court held the law allows sensitive data to be redacted

  • The Help America Vote Act supports the demand

    Rejected; under appeal. Final ruling. The court found no disclosure provision in the Act

  • The 1960 Civil Rights Act lets it demand the list

    Rejected; under appeal. Final ruling. The court found the demand letter's stated basis and purpose deficient

Represented by

U.S. Department of Justice

Oregon, Secretary of State Read, and intervenors

Defendants

Oregon officials, joined by Our Oregon and three voters

Wants

Dismissal, keeping sensitive voter data private

Key arguments

  • Registration law lets Oregon redact sensitive data

    Accepted; under appeal. Final ruling

  • The Help America Vote Act has no disclosure right

    Accepted; under appeal. Final ruling

  • The 1960 Act demand lacked a valid basis and purpose

    Accepted; under appeal. Final ruling

Represented by

Counsel not recorded in this snapshot

Friends of the court: Democratic National Committee and ACLU of Oregon and League of Women Voters of Oregon and Phil Keisling and six other individuals and Maryland, with a multistate brief and League of United Latin American Citizens and Former U.S. Justice Department employees and J. Morgan Kousser, Orville Vernon Burton, James McCrary and Electronic Privacy Information Center and Cambridge Center for Justice and America's Future and Citizens United

Content snapshot as of .