The US Supreme Court on Friday cleared the way for the Trump administration to use a modified federal database to help verify voters’ citizenship status. The unsigned majority opinion paused a lower court ruling that had blocked the program.
The decision came just weeks before the November 3 midterm elections. The court stated that the lower court’s order “inhibits the Federal Government’s efforts to assist state and local agencies in the proper administration of the midterm elections.”
President Donald Trump issued an executive order in March 2025. It directed the Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration to expand systems for verifying citizenship. Officials then modified the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements database, known as SAVE.
The changes allowed access to Social Security numbers and records of US-born citizens. They also permitted bulk searches of voter rolls. States could use the tool voluntarily to check for potential noncitizens.
US District Judge Sparkle L. Sooknanan ruled in June that the expansion violated federal privacy laws. She ordered the Department of Homeland Security to stop permitting states to search the data. A federal appeals court later declined to pause her order.
The Justice Department then sought emergency relief from the Supreme Court. The majority found that the challengers’ claims “likely lack merit.”
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote a dissenting opinion. Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan joined her. Jackson described the decision as a “questionable interim ruling” on statutory provisions the court had not previously interpreted.
Federal law still limits systematic voter roll purges within 90 days of an election. As a result, widespread removals before the midterms remained restricted.
