Trump Admin Seeking Access to Minnesota Voter Rolls Amidst ICE Dispute

As tensions escalate over a massive federal immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota that has included the fatal shooting of a resident by a Border Patrol agent, the Trump administration is demanding access to the state’s voter registration database — drawing sharp criticism from Minnesota officials and civil liberties advocates.

At the center of the dispute is a Jan. 24 letter from U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. In that letter, Bondi tied cooperation with federal authorities to several specific demands, including access to the state’s voter rolls, data on Medicaid and food assistance recipients, and the repeal of so-called sanctuary policies that limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.

READ THE LETTER: Pam Bondi Tells Tim Walz That Handing Over Minnesota’s Voter Rolls Can Help Prevent Another ‘National Tragedy’ – People.com - https://people.com/pam-bondi-full-letter-tim-walz-after-alex-pretti-shooting-11892085 

Federal officials say the voter and welfare data are needed to ensure compliance with federal law, assist in fraud investigations and bolster the enforcement of immigration statutes in Minnesota, where thousands of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol agents have been deployed under what the Department of Homeland Security calls Operation Metro Surge.

Bondi’s letter argues that state resistance to federal immigration enforcement has contributed to disorder in Minneapolis and across the state, and that greater data access and policy cooperation would help “restore the rule of law” and support federal officers operating there.

Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon, whose office oversees elections, rejected the request, calling it an “outrageous attempt to coerce Minnesota into giving the federal government private data on millions of U.S. citizens.” Simon said voter rolls contain sensitive information protected under state and federal law, and that much of the data the DOJ seeks is already publicly available without infringing on privacy.

Gov. Walz and other state leaders have also condemned the federal data demands as inappropriate and unrelated to law enforcement, insisting that the presence of ICE and Border Patrol agents — especially after a second fatal shooting by federal officers — should be reduced rather than used as leverage.

Critics — including some civil liberties groups and Democratic lawmakers — argue the demand for voter registration data amid a contentious enforcement operation appears politically motivated and raises concerns about election interference. Legal analysts note that similar federal demands for state data have met resistance and litigation in multiple states.

Supporters of stronger federal immigration enforcement counter that cooperation from state and local jurisdictions, including better access to data for investigations, is essential to curbing crime and illegal immigration. But the explicit linkage of sensitive personal data to a large and controversial federal operation in Minnesota has amplified ongoing debates over rights, privacy and the proper scope of federal authority.