West Virginia Secretary of State Kris Warner
CHARLESTON – Community groups are asking a federal court to allow them to intervene in a lawsuit brought by the Trump administration against West Virginia for refusing to hand over sensitive data on voters in the state.
West Virginia Citizen Action Group filed a motion April 2 to intervene as a defendant in the lawsuit brought by the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice against West Virginia.
In February, the DOJ sued the state after Secretary of State Kris Warner previously had refused to turn over the data. The DOJ has requested private voter information such as birth dates, addresses, driver’s license numbers and/or the last four digits of Social Security numbers.
West Virginia is one of 30 states and the District of Columbia being sued by the administration for not handing over this information.
“The federal government has no valid basis or purpose for seizing West Virginia voters’ sensitive data,” CAG Deputy Director Julie Archer said. “State and local election officials should be the only ones with access to these, as they run our elections.
“The DOJ’s investigation leans heavily on long-debunked conspiracy theories surrounding the 2020 election. These baseless claims are being used as justification to break the law and interfere with free and fair elections.”
One of the attorneys representing CAG agreed.
“Demands for West Virginians’ sensitive voter data are about far more than access to the data itself – they are part and parcel with the Trump administration's dangerous and misguided attempts to assert authority over elections that it does not have,” said Renata O’Donnell, senior legal counsel for strategic litigation at Campaign Legal Center. “The Constitution clearly gives the power to regulate and administer elections to the states and Congress, not the executive branch – and that includes the Justice Department.
“Voters in West Virginia should trust that their sensitive data remains safeguarded, and Campaign Legal Center will continue to defend this right in court.”
The DOJ said Warner’s refusal to provide the info violates Title III of the Civil Rights Act and requested he provided a computerized list of the state’s voter registration list that includes names, birthdates, addresses and either the driver’s license numbers, the last four digits of Social Security numbers or unique Help America Vote Act identifier. It also requested any other federal election records as requested by the U.S. Attorney General.
“West Virginians entrust me with their sensitive personal information. Turning it over to the federal government, which is contrary to State law, will simply not happen,” Warner previously. “State law is clear: voter lists are available in a redacted format from my office, but I'll not be turning over any West Virginian’s protected information.”
Warner’s office is fighting the DOJ suit, which was filed under now fired Attorney General Pam Bondi.
“Bring it on!” Mike Queen, Warner’s communications director, told The West Virginia Record. “The federal government is not going to get any personal information on West Virginia voters as long as Kris Warner is Secretary of State.”
CAG includes thousands of voters across the state whose data may be compromised depending on the outcome of this litigation. It is represented by attorneys from Campaign Legal Center, the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia.
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia case number 2:26-cv-00156
