Utah Voter Files: Judge Barlow Ends DOJ Bid for State Data

Utah voters will not see their names, birthdays, and addresses handed over to federal officials after a court ruled the Justice Department did not have the legal right to demand the state's complete voter database. The decision leaves the personal data of the state's electorate under the control of the local election office rather than federal agencies.

The fight began when federal lawyers sued Deidre Henderson, the state's lieutenant governor and top election official. The administration argued that the Civil Rights Act of 1960 required Henderson to provide records that came into her possession for federal inspection. They specifically sought a list including driver's license numbers or the last four digits of Social Security numbers for every registered voter in Utah.

Judge David Barlow, a Trump appointee who took the federal bench in 2019, rejected that interpretation on Friday. He cited a Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that stated an ordinary English speaker would not say a person has come into possession of something they created and maintained. Barlow concluded that the state did not merely hold the data but established and maintained the database itself.

The Justice Department had argued that the purpose of the law was to serve as an enforcement tool for federal election laws. They suggested that excluding the statewide registration database would make the law ineffective. Barlow disagreed, writing that judges have no warrant to elevate vague invocations of statutory purpose over the words Congress chose. He dismissed the complaint with prejudice, which prevents the department from simply refiling the same claim.

This loss is one of more than 25 voter-roll litigation defeats the administration has suffered since beginning its campaign to address alleged illegal voting. A DOJ spokeswoman told Fox News Digital that the department would appeal the decision. She noted that the only appellate court to review the issue had split on largely partisan grounds, with five judges signing onto powerful dissents.

Henderson reacted to the ruling on social media, stating that her office would continue to uphold the rule of law. She said the ruling allows the state to safeguard the fundamental right to free, fair, and secure elections. The White House did not respond to a request for comment on the dismissal.

The Justice Department still has three pending cases related to voter rolls in Hawaii, Idaho, and Delaware. It is also currently appealing losses in California and Oregon. The next step in the Utah case is an appeal to a higher court, where the department hopes to reverse Barlow's decision.