Federal Judge Blocks SAVE Database, Defends Voters Against Surveillance Overreach
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U.S. District Judge Sparkle L. Sooknanan has struck a blow against invasive government surveillance by ruling that the expanded SAVE program violates privacy and cannot be used to check voter citizenship.
In a significant victory for civil liberties, a federal judge on Monday halted the recently upgraded Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database, which state election officials have exploited to target and disenfranchise non-citizen voters—often at the expense of marginalized communities. U.S. District Court Judge Sparkle L. Sooknanan found that the program’s aggregation of personal data flagrantly breaches congressional privacy protections and exposes countless eligible voters to wrongful removal from the rolls.
"All in all, the federal government has knowingly trampled on the privacy rights of American citizens in a manner that threatens the sacred right to vote," the judge wrote, underscoring the gravity of the state’s disregard for fundamental rights. The ruling comes after a lawsuit by the League of Women Voters, the Electronic Privacy Information Center, and other advocates who argued that the revamped SAVE system is a tool of voter suppression, violating privacy and voting-rights laws. Plaintiffs also highlighted the federal government’s lack of authority to share sensitive personal information across agencies without explicit statutory authorization—a clear overreach of executive power. Attorney Nikhel Sus, representing the plaintiffs, celebrated the decision as “an across-the-board victory,” warning that naturalized citizens—often people of color—are especially vulnerable to being unjustly purged from voter rolls. Legal scholars pointed to the case as a critical affirmation that executive orders cannot override foundational federal privacy statutes. The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees SAVE, lashed out on social media, while the Justice Department remained silent—further evidence of the administration’s disregard for transparency. The judge noted that the updated system had already led some states to purge citizens from voter rolls based on faulty data, reinforcing fears that the database is a weapon for targeting lawful voters, particularly in marginalized communities. The SAVE program, initially designed to prevent non-citizens from accessing benefits, was dramatically expanded in 2025 to allow mass searches using names, birth dates, and Social Security numbers. At least 25 states have used this tool since its expansion, scanning over 67 million voter registrations—an unprecedented intrusion into personal privacy. The court’s order now casts doubt on the future of federal voter-verification schemes that threaten the right to vote for all.