Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs Rejects DOJ Voter Data Request

Washington Secretary of State Fights DOJ Voter Roll Request One Week Before General Election

The Washington Office of the Secretary of State announced it has received a letter from the Department of Justice requesting information on individuals appearing on state voter rolls, arriving just one week before the General Election. Secretary of State Steve Hobbs stated that the timing is intended to cast unfounded suspicion on election results while pointing out that the DOJ lost its court battle for Washington’s complete voter rolls last month.

As election officials manage the final stretch of voting, the state finds itself balancing federal inquiries against strict state and federal protections guarding voter privacy and ballot access. With thousands of ballots already impacted by procedural hurdles, the latest federal demand forces state election administrators into a defensive posture.

Defending State Authority and Voter Privacy

State officials are actively reviewing the DOJ request to ensure compliance with applicable laws, emphasizing that the U.S. Constitution grants states the authority to administer elections. Courts across the country have repeatedly upheld this principle, including through the unanimous rejection of prior federal demands for confidential statewide voter roll data.

Washington Secretary of State defies DOJ over voter data request

We take our responsibility to protect voter information seriously and will only respond to requests that follow due process. We saw what happened in California and don’t want Washingtonians to be harassed, said Secretary of State Steve Hobbs.

Federal law protects the right to vote by strictly limiting the ability of states and counties to remove registered voters within 90 days of a federal election. The Secretary of State’s office maintains that its systems comply with these safeguards to ensure eligible citizens have their votes counted. Election authorities note that the database systems frequently utilized by federal agencies often flag legitimate U.S. citizens as noncitizens, placing legal voting rights at risk while subjecting private citizen data to a 10-year retention period.

Washington Secretary of State defies Trump’s DOJ over voter data request

Among the roughly 400 records cited in the DOJ letter, one record dates all the way back to 1994. Since that year, over 113.5 million primary and general election ballots have been cast safely across Washington state. Election officials maintain regular communication with federal and state partners, including the United States Attorney’s Office, to discuss administrative matters, but they draw a sharp line against what they view as last-minute interference.

The Real Threat: Ballot Rejections from Delayed Postmarks

While federal inquiries focus on voter rolls, state election officials point to a much more immediate crisis impacting voters. Delays in the postmarking process have driven up ballot rejections by 300% to 500% in certain Washington counties.

During the August Primary, just over 20,000 out of 1.9 million returned ballots were rejected due to late postmarks. For comparison, only about 4,600 ballots out of 4 million returned were rejected for the same reason during the much larger 2024 General Election. State data shows this sharp increase has disenfranchised thousands of eligible voters.

At a time when thousands of Washington voters already face ballot rejections due to delayed postmarks, our focus should be on ensuring every eligible voter can exercise their right to vote, not creating additional uncertainty about their eligibility, [Hobbs] added. Our priority remains protecting Washington citizens’ right to vote and their private information. We will not release information that is protected under state and federal law.

State officials maintain that Washington elections remain fundamentally secure. Documented instances of voter fraud, including noncitizen voting, remain exceedingly rare. Every voter must sign a formal eligibility declaration on their ballot return envelope during every election, and suspected cases are actively investigated and referred to county sheriffs and prosecutors when warranted.

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