The Recent Rise of Anti-Voter Legislation

Blog /Last Updated: January 27, 2025

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Election litigation leading up to and in the aftermath of presidential elections is nothing new. Many Americans distinctly remember the knife's-edge 2000 election, which resulted in the pivotal United States Supreme Court case Bush v. Gore. During and after the 2000 election, 196 election-related lawsuits were filed. More than double that were filed during the 2020 Election following candidate Donald Trump's baseless claims of election fraud.

The 2024 election was no exception, with multiple election lawsuits filed in the days, weeks, and months leading up to November 5. But, distinctly, many anti-voter lawsuits were filed that sought to disrupt election administration and purge eligible voters from the rolls.

The League of Women Voters of the United States (LWVUS) monitored these eleventh-hour anti-voter lawsuits, including the substantial amount of voter purge lawsuits. This blog will explore how many of these lawsuits were filed and how they impacted the election.

Anti-Voter Lawsuits Around the 2024 Election

As of November 6, 2024, LWVUS tracked 64 anti-voter lawsuits filed in 2024 that sought to sow distrust in the election. These numbers don't include all election litigation; they exclude lawsuits that increase voting accessibility or don't affect a voter's ability to cast a ballot (such as primary candidate challenges). Further, lawsuits in which the plaintiff is attempting to remedy anti-voter actions taken by a state, such as the pro-voter litigation concerning Virginia's recent voter purge, are also not included.

An eyebrow-raising 12 anti-voter lawsuits were filed in August, and 19 were filed in September. While the beginning of October saw a slowdown, filings picked up as November neared, with 11 anti-voter lawsuits filed. This trend is striking compared to the litigation filed in early 2024. Between January and August 2024, no more than six anti-voter lawsuits were filed in a single month. The proximity of these later lawsuits to the election was particularly concerning, as many sought to purge registered voters from the rolls within the 90-day quiet period mandated by the National Voter Registration Act ("NVRA").

An Increase in Voter Purge Lawsuits

An overwhelming number of the filings in August, September, and October were voter purge lawsuits, in which plaintiffs demand that registered voters be purged from the voter rolls. Plaintiffs claimed that there were ineligible voters on the voter registration rolls, either due to improper voter roll maintenance or negligence in removing ineligible voters.

As of November 6, 2024, LWVUS tracked 64 anti-voter lawsuits filed in 2024 that sought to sow distrust in the election.

In the earlier months of 2024, election litigation was more varied, with some lawsuits attacking ballot drop boxes or President Biden's Executive Order 14019. It was only in the months leading up to November that litigation rapidly shifted to being almost entirely focused on voter purging.

Voter purges pose a risk of disenfranchising eligible voters - even voters who receive letters challenging their registration may experience a chilling effect, in which voters do not vote due to fear of accidentally breaking the law, even if they aren't ultimately purged. Voter purge lawsuits often incorrectly claim that states or counties are in violation of the NVRA due to "ineligible voters" being registered.

This is ironic, as the NVRA prohibits election officials from systemically removing registered voters from the voter rolls 90 days prior to an election. This 90-day "quiet period" is intended to protect voters from being purged right before an election, which could cause confusion and difficulty re-registering, particularly in states with early registration deadlines. For the 2024 election, 90 days prior to November 5, 2024, was August 7, 2024. Yet many of these voter registration lawsuits were filed after that date, with the majority filed in September. Thus, the NVRA was weaponized to challenge the registration status of voters protected under the 90-day provision.

This can be particularly impactful for newly naturalized US citizens, who are eligible to vote but may still have some records (such as old driver's licenses) that do not reflect their US citizenship. Certaingroups have been pushing a narrative that there was widespread non-citizen voter registration in the 2024 Election. This narrative has caused thousands of voters to be swept up in voter purges. In places like Virginia, where non-citizens can legally obtain driver's licenses, newly naturalized citizens can be flagged for removal if their driver's license is not updated to reflect their citizenship status.

The League of Women Voters has been active in protecting voters from unlawful purges.The League of Women Voters of Virginia actively challenged a voter purge performed by Virginia only a month before the election. While the trial court temporarily stopped the purge, the Supreme Court ultimately stayed the decision and allowed Virginia to purge over 1,600 voters.

Why Are People Filing Voter Purging Lawsuits?

The majority of these lawsuits have been filed by some combination of the Republican National Committee, state Republican parties, and conservative-leaning political groups or activists. The latter category is dominated by the volunteer organization United Sovereign Americans, which has been a prolific plaintiff in litigation challenging voters' registrations. States have also been somewhat active in filing anti-voter litigation, though to a far lesser degree. For example, in State of Montana v. Biden,multiple states jointly filed a lawsuit to challenge Executive Order 14019.

Another notable aspect of these lawsuits is where they are filed. Most of these lawsuits have been filed in "swing states," particularly Pennsylvania and Georgia. These states were close races in 2024 Election polling, in which potentially a few thousand votes in those states could have made a difference in the election outcome, up and down the ballot.

Voter purges pose a risk of disenfranchising eligible voters - even voters who receive letters challenging their registration may experience a chilling effect.

The Impact of 2024's Voter Purge Lawsuits

In jurisdictions where these lawsuits were successful, eligible voters could have been improperly purged from the voter rolls right before the election. For example, just days before the election, the Supreme Court stayed an injunction against Virginia's voter purges secured by the League and its partners, allowing it to disenfranchise 1,600 voters. This decision was made despite the NVRA's prohibition on the systematic removal of voters 90 days before an election. Disturbingly, some of the purged voters are known to be eligible citizens but nonetheless were subject to removal from the voter rolls.

Even unsuccessful voter purge lawsuits can still cause damage. Voters who receive letters claiming that they are ineligible to vote and could face criminal penalties if they do may choose to forgo voting regardless of whether they're purged. These lawsuits could still increase electoral distrust even though the election is over. Indeed, there could still be election-related challenges in the days to come.

The League of Women Voters is dedicated to ensuring that all eligible voters can cast their ballot in any given election, including newly naturalized US citizens. The League will continue to watch voter purge lawsuits as they proceed. Go to VOTE411.org for the latest election information, including information about voter registration. For more information about the League's efforts to fight anti-voter actions and laws, check out the Legal Center.

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