De-escalation: Judge Gallagher dismisses DOJ voter-data suit

U.S. District Judge Stephanie Gallagher dismissed the Justice Department’s lawsuit demanding Maryland’s unredacted statewide voter registration list on June 18, ending the case with prejudice. She ruled that the Civil Rights Act’s record‑keeping provision does not cover a database the state itself compiles and continuously updates, and said interpreting it otherwise would conflict with later federal laws that require ongoing list maintenance. The ruling marked the ninth defeat for the department in these voter‑roll cases.

The suit, filed against Maryland’s elections administrator in his official capacity, followed a July 2025 demand for “all fields” in the voter file, including dates of birth, addresses, driver’s license numbers and partial Social Security numbers. Gallagher wrote that the Act applies to documents election officials receive from voters, such as applications, not to the statewide list the state creates.

Maryland does not have to turn over the unredacted data for more than 4.3 million voters, and the Justice Department cannot bring the same Civil Rights Act claim back to this court. Courts in multiple other states have reached the same conclusion, leaving the department without a win in these cases so far.

AI-synthesized from multiple reported sources