Demos Applauds Judge’s Ruling in Texas Voter Purge Case

"This was a blatant attempt by state officials to suppress the voice of Texas residents [and] to target immigrants and people of color."

In a win for voting rights, a Texas federal judge in Demos’ and co-counsel’s voter purge case has ordered the Secretary of State and counties throughout Texas not to remove anyone from the rolls, and not to send notices for removal based on a flawed voter purge list.

“This was a blatant attempt by state officials–who should be protecting the vote–to suppress the voice of Texas residents, and to target immigrants and people of color. We are pleased that the judge has put an immediate halt to the State’s voter purge efforts, and Demos will continue to fight for fair access to the ballot box,” said Demos Senior Counsel Stuart Naifeh.

Demos, along with The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, the national ACLU, the Texas Civil Rights Project, and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, sued the Texas Secretary of State David Whitley because of his flawed voter purge list that unlawfully went after naturalized citizens, who are fully entitled to vote. These false accusations created outrage and fear for naturalized citizens, many of whom wondered if their fundamental right to vote was in jeopardy.

Additionally, Demos sued election officials from Galveston, Blanco, Fayette, Caldwell, Hansford, Harrison, Smith, and Washington counties as they sent out notices threatening to remove voters from the rolls based on Secretary Whitley’s flawed list.

The plaintiffs in the case are MOVE Texas, Jolt Initiative, LWV of TX, and a Houston voter named Nivien Saleh, an Egyptian native who has voted consistently since becoming a naturalized U.S. citizen in January 2018. Read additional background on the case here

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Demos is a dynamic think-and-do tank that powers the movement for a just, inclusive, multiracial democracy. Through cutting-edge policy research, inspiring litigation, and deep relationships with grassroots organizations, Demos champions solutions that will create a democracy and economy rooted in racial equity.