{"id":59171,"date":"2026-04-09T16:27:29","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T20:27:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/?post_type=work&p=59171"},"modified":"2026-04-09T16:27:30","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T20:27:30","slug":"u-s-v-pennsylvania","status":"publish","type":"work","link":"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/ru\/work\/u-s-v-pennsylvania\/","title":{"rendered":"U.S. v. Pennsylvania"},"template":"","class_list":["post-59171","work","type-work","status-publish","hentry","work_type-litigation"],"acf":{"details":{"summary":"The Trump Administration has sued several states, including Pennsylvania, in an attempt to collect non-public voter files with sensitive voter data \u2013 now, Common Cause has been granted a motion to intervene in the lawsuit on behalf of Pennsylvania. ","featured_image":"","work_type":157,"related_issues":false,"location":46},"sidebar":{"helper_enable_sidebar":true,"helper_media_contact":{"heading":"Media Contact","manually_enter_person":false,"person":"","name":"","role":"","phone":"","email":""},"helper_links_downloads":{"heading":"Links & Downloads","links":[{"file_download":true,"link":null,"file":58275}]}},"page_layout":[{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_wysiwyg","_acfe_flexible_toggle":null,"component_wysiwyg":{"content":"

Pennsylvania Voter Privacy Victory: Common Cause Intervenes in DOJ Lawsuit<\/h2>\r\nLast year, Common Cause filed a motion to intervene in a lawsuit brought by the\u00a0Department of Justice against\u00a0Pennsylvania\u00a0that demands it hand over its voter file. A district court has\u00a0<\/span>granted our motion<\/span><\/b>, meaning Common Cause is now\u00a0party\u00a0to the lawsuit, and we are\u00a0<\/span>seeking its dismissal<\/span><\/b>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\r\n

The Conflict Between Federal Demands and Pennsylvania State Privacy Laws<\/h2>\r\nBy law, states, not the federal government, have the authority to\u00a0maintain\u00a0their voter files, which\u00a0contain\u00a0sensitive information including full names, addresses, dates of birth, driver\u2019s\u00a0license\u00a0and partial Social Security numbers. However, the Trump administration has been on a quest to collect these databases to assemble their own master voter file, a move that\u00a0<\/span>threatens the integrity of our elections<\/span><\/b>\u00a0\u0438\u00a0<\/span>risks disenfranchising<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span>many Americans<\/span><\/b>\u00a0ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\r\n

Secretary Al Schmidt and Pennsylvania\u2019s Resistance to Data Seizure<\/h2>\r\nMost of these states, including\u00a0Pennsylvania, have resisted pressure from the DOJ to hand over voter data.\u00a0<\/span>Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt has explained<\/span><\/a>\u00a0that the request is at odds with both state and federal law.\u00a0<\/span>Now,\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0among the several states\u00a0being sued for\u00a0the voter file<\/span><\/b>\u00a0by the\u00a0Trump\u00a0administration. In response, Common Cause has filed motions to intervene in several of these lawsuits. Our motion in\u00a0Pennsylvania\u00a0was granted.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\r\n

What\u2019s\u00a0next in this case?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\r\nMoving forward, the\u00a0Commonwealth\u00a0of\u00a0Pennsylvania, Common Cause, and its partners are seeking the dismissal of this lawsuit, which would reject the Trump administrations\u00a0attempt\u00a0to collect this sensitive data.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\r\n

What is at risk if the DOJ gets ahold of state voter files?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\r\nTrump has repeatedly signaled his willingness to undermine our democracy to stay in power. Whether\u00a0<\/span>continuing to spread disproven conspiracies about the 2020 election<\/span><\/a>\u00a0\u0438\u043b\u0438\u00a0<\/span>calling on Republicans to \u201cnationalize the voting,\u201d<\/span><\/a>\u00a0he has shown\u00a0time and again\u00a0that\u00a0<\/span>winning is more important to him than a fair and free democracy<\/span><\/b>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nDemanding state voter files is another attempt to undermine states\u2019 statutory power to manage elections, and the disenfranchisement that the Trump administration could carry out with a master national voter file is deeply concerning.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nA list like this could be used to conduct\u00a0<\/span>strategic and widespread purges<\/span><\/b>\u00a0of eligible voters from voter rolls, including purges that are targeted based on factors like location, age, and gender in an effort to gain a\u00a0<\/span>partisan advantage<\/span><\/b>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nAnd given the Department of Homeland Security\u2019s cruel attacks on immigrants and communities of color, regardless of their citizenship status, a potential federal database like this poses even greater risk \u2013 already, the DOJ\u00a0<\/span>has acknowledged<\/span><\/a>\u00a0that it is\u00a0<\/span>sharing voter information with DHS<\/span><\/b>. Knowing that the federal government has collected a database of sensitive information could intimidate potential voters from these communities and prevent them from registering to vote.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>"}},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_accordion","_acfe_flexible_toggle":null,"component_accordion":{"heading":"F.A.Q.","panels":[{"panel_heading":"Why is Secretary Al Schmidt refusing to hand over Pennsylvania\u2019s voter file?","panel_copy":"Secretary Al Schmidt<\/b> has stated that the DOJ's demand for unredacted voter files violates both Pennsylvania state law<\/b> and federal statutes. The state argues that sensitive data\u2014such as full Social Security digits and driver\u2019s license numbers\u2014is protected to prevent identity theft and voter intimidation."},{"panel_heading":"What is the \"Master Voter File\" and how does it affect the 2026 midterms?","panel_copy":"The \"Master Voter File\" is a centralized federal database the administration aims to build by seizing state records.<\/span> Advocates warn this database could be used to conduct <\/span>targeted voter purges<\/span><\/b> ahead of the <\/span>2026 midterm elections<\/span><\/b>, potentially removing eligible voters based on partisan demographics to influence the outcome.<\/span>"},{"panel_heading":"How does DOJ and DHS data sharing impact Pennsylvania voters?","panel_copy":"The DOJ has admitted to sharing voter records with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)<\/b>. This cooperation is a major concern for civil rights groups, as it may be used to target immigrant communities and voters of color, creating a \"chilling effect\" that discourages eligible citizens from registering or voting."}]}},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_add_component","_acfe_flexible_toggle":null,"component_add_component":null},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_take_action","_acfe_flexible_toggle":null,"component_take_action":{"heading":"Take Action","button_text":"","manually_curate":false,"action":null}},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_banner","_acfe_flexible_toggle":null,"component_banner":{"use_donate_banner":true,"title":"Title [highlight]with highlighting[\/highlight] and additional text.","button":null,"image":null}},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_related_articles","_acfe_flexible_toggle":null,"component_related_articles":{"heading":"Updates","button_text":"See all Related Articles","manually_curate":false,"articles":null}},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_resources","_acfe_flexible_toggle":null,"component_resources":{"heading":"Related Resources","button_text":"See all Related Resources","manually_curate":false,"resource":null}},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_press","_acfe_flexible_toggle":null,"component_press":{"heading":"Press","button_text":"","manually_curate":false,"press":null}},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_events","_acfe_flexible_toggle":null,"component_events":{"heading":"Events"}},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_our_experts","_acfe_flexible_toggle":null,"component_our_experts":{"heading":"","manually_curate":false,"people":null}}]},"yoast_head":"\nU.S. v. Pennsylvania - Common Cause<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/ru\/pennsylvania\/\u0440\u0430\u0431\u043e\u0442\u0430\/u-s-v-pennsylvania\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"ru_RU\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"U.S. v. 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