MONTGOMERY, Ala. — A federal judge has temporarily blocked Alabama from removing thousands of voters from its rolls just weeks ahead of the 2024 general election, marking a significant victory for voting rights advocates. The decision came after the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) sued the state, arguing that Alabama’s planned purge violated the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA), which prohibits systematic voter removal within 90 days of a federal election. This ruling is seen as a key win in the fight against voter suppression tactics that have frequently targeted minority communities.
The voter removal effort, initiated by Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen in August, aimed to purge more than 3,200 voters flagged as non-citizens. However, the program faced immediate backlash, with civil rights groups and the DOJ contending that many eligible citizens—both naturalized and native-born—were wrongly included in the purge. The judge’s ruling ensures that voters marked for removal will remain on the rolls for the November election.
This is not the first time Alabama has come under scrutiny for its voter list maintenance practices. Voting rights groups have long accused the state’s Republican leadership of engaging in tactics aimed at disenfranchising voters, particularly in minority communities. These efforts include strict voter ID laws and attempts to reduce early voting options.
The court’s decision comes amid broader concerns about voter suppression efforts led by the Republican Party nationwide. Alabama’s voter purge is part of a trend that critics argue is designed to reduce voter turnout in key elections. Historically, Republican lawmakers in the South have introduced measures such as voter ID requirements, restrictions on early voting, and purges of voter rolls to limit the participation of minority voters, who tend to vote Democratic.
In recent years, Republicans have also been implicated in attempts to undermine elections on a national scale. Following the 2020 presidential election, several Republican leaders, including former President Donald Trump, pushed baseless claims of widespread voter fraud, particularly in states that were crucial to the election outcome. These claims culminated in the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, when a mob of Trump supporters sought to overturn the election results.
Alabama, a Republican stronghold, has also seen its fair share of controversial electoral policies. In 2011, the state passed a voter ID law that critics said disproportionately affected Black and low-income voters. More recently, the state was sued for allegedly closing DMV offices in predominantly Black counties, making it more difficult for residents in those areas to obtain the identification needed to vote.
The NVRA, passed in 1993, requires states to maintain accurate voter rolls but prohibits systematic purges close to federal elections. The law’s “Quiet Period” provision is designed to prevent states from removing eligible voters through last-minute purges that can be riddled with errors.
Despite the ruling, Alabama Republicans have vowed to continue their efforts to tighten voter rolls. Secretary of State Wes Allen defended the state’s actions, arguing that the purge was necessary to prevent non-citizens from voting. However, critics have pointed out that cases of non-citizen voting are extremely rare, and that purges often result in eligible voters being wrongfully removed.
As Alabama heads into the 2024 election, the battle over voter access is far from over. While the judge’s ruling is a victory for now, it highlights the ongoing tension between voting rights advocates and Republican-led states like Alabama, where disputes over election integrity and access to the ballot box continue to play out.