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Must Oklahoma give DOJ its full voter list with ID numbers?

United States v. Ziriax

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At a glance

The Justice Department sued Oklahoma's election chief for the full voter list, with birth dates and license or partial Social Security numbers. Before any ruling, it dropped the suit in a way that lets it refile.

  1. What happened · 5 steps
    1. DOJ demands Oklahoma's voter listDec 12, 2025

      The Attorney General's office asked for the full statewide voter list with personal ID fields, citing a 1960 civil rights law.

    2. Oklahoma declines to share the unredacted listFeb 4, 2026

      Secretary Ziriax wrote that he was not legally authorized to share the unredacted list, according to the complaint.

    3. The United States suesFeb 26, 2026

      DOJ asked the court to declare the refusal unlawful and order the list turned over within 5 days of an order.

    4. Voter and retiree groups ask to joinMar 2026

      League of Women Voters of Oklahoma, LULAC, a voter, and a retirees' group asked to join; the court never ruled.

    5. DOJ drops the caseMar 24, 2026

      The United States dismissed the suit before Ziriax answered, without prejudice, so it may sue again.

  2. Case dropped; no order to hand over data

    No court ordered Oklahoma to share its voter list; the dismissal leaves DOJ free to bring the claim again.

Where it stands

Voluntary dismissal

DOJ dropped the suit without prejudice, so it may sue again. · Mar 24, 2026

The case ended when the United States withdrew it; no court ruled on the voter-list demand.

Follow what's happening

  1. Lawsuit filed

    Feb 26, 2026

    DOJ sued to obtain Oklahoma's full voter registration list.

  2. Groups ask to join

    Mar 2026

    Voter and retiree groups moved to join; the court never ruled.

  3. Voluntary dismissal

    Mar 24, 2026

    DOJ dropped the suit without prejudice, so it may sue again.

The parties

United States

Plaintiff

The Justice Department, through its Civil Rights Division

Wants

Oklahoma's full voter list, with ID fields

Key arguments

  • A 1960 law lets it demand federal election records

    Not yet addressed by the court

  • It needs the list to check voter-roll upkeep

    Not yet addressed by the court

  • Federal law exempts partial SSNs from privacy limits

    Not yet addressed by the court

Represented by

U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division

Paul Ziriax

Defendant

Oklahoma State Election Board secretary, sued officially

Wants

Not to share the unredacted voter list

Key arguments

  • He is not legally authorized to share the full list

    Not yet addressed by the court

  • Voter groups: data would feed a national database

    Not yet addressed by the court

  • Voter groups: the state can't speak for their privacy

    Not yet addressed by the court

Represented by

Counsel not recorded in this snapshot

Arguments and the court's response

Content snapshot as of .