Federal Judge Patricia Giles Orders Virginia to Restore 1,600 Voter Registrations Ahead of Election

A federal judge, U.S. District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles, appointed by President Biden, has issued a ruling that halts Virginia‘s voter removal initiative and orders the state to reinstate over 1,600 voters who were purged from the registration rolls. This decision was made on Friday, October 25, 2024, in response to a lawsuit filed by the Justice Department and other advocacy groups.

The judge’s order comes after Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin issued an executive order in August mandating daily updates to the state’s voter lists to eliminate individuals who could not confirm their U.S. citizenship with the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles. The Justice Department argued that this systematic removal of voters during the 90-day quiet period before the November election violates the National Voter Registration Act, which prohibits such actions to ensure eligible voters have time to resolve any issues before being removed.

Judge Giles determined that the removals were systematic and not individualized, thus violating federal law. She directed the state to restore the purged voters onto the registration roster on an individualized basis rather than through an automated program.

Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and Attorney General Jason Miyares have criticized the ruling, with Youngkin announcing that the state will seek an emergency stay of the injunction from the Fourth Circuit of Appeals or the U.S. Supreme Court. They argue that the process was legal and necessary to prevent noncitizens from voting, despite the Justice Department’s concerns that eligible voters were wrongly removed due to bureaucratic errors.

This case is the second instance this month where a federal court has halted voter purging actions by a state governed by Republicans, following a similar ruling in Alabama last week.