Supreme Court Backs States' Use of Controversial Citizenship Data for Voter Audits

The Supreme Court has reinstated a contentious federal citizenship data system, known as Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE), for use in state voter audits. In a 6-3 decision on September 25, 2026, the Court sided with the Trump administration, reversing a lower court's order that had blocked the expanded use of the tool. The high court's unsigned opinion stated that claims from voting rights groups regarding the legality of the modified database "likely lack merit" and suggested it would likely overturn the district court's finding that the administration violated federal law.

The SAVE system, originally designed to verify the immigration status of non-citizens for public benefits, was overhauled by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to link with Social Security Administration records and allow for bulk queries of voter rolls. This expansion, a key part of former President Trump's initiative to identify non-citizen voters, was challenged by advocacy groups who argued it unlawfully centralized Americans' private data and could lead to eligible citizens being wrongly removed from voter lists. U.S. District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan had previously ruled in June 2026 that the administration "knowingly trampled on the privacy rights of American citizens" by violating federal privacy laws with the revamped system.

Despite concerns from dissenting justices about the potential for disenfranchisement, the Supreme Court's majority emphasized the federal government's obligation to assist states in verifying voter citizenship. The ruling allows states to resume using SAVE for individualized voter checks as the midterm elections approach, although the Court's opinion noted that federal law prohibits mass purges of voter rolls within 90 days of an election. This decision marks a significant development for the Trump administration's efforts to enhance election integrity measures.