Federal Court Blocks Trump Administration’s Bid for Vermont Voter Rolls

A federal court in Vermont has dealt another setback to the Trump administration’s effort to obtain detailed voter-registration information from states.

U.S. District Judge Mary Kay Lanthier ruled Thursday that Vermont does not have to turn over its unredacted voter-registration list to the federal government. The Justice Department had sued Vermont after Secretary of State Sarah Copeland Hanzas refused to provide the requested information.

The federal government had sought voter information including names, addresses and driver’s-license data, arguing that the records were needed to help ensure compliance with federal election laws. Vermont officials pushed back, citing concerns over privacy and federal intrusion into state-run election administration.

The Vermont case is part of a broader legal battle over the Trump administration’s attempts to increase federal involvement in voter-roll verification. The administration has also faced court challenges involving a federal citizenship-verification database and new restrictions on mail voting.

Separately, the Supreme Court recently left in place a lower-court block on the administration’s new mail-ballot rules for the 2026 midterms.

The claim that Democrats are “24-0” in these cases should be treated cautiously: I could verify the Vermont ruling and several other recent court defeats for the administration, but I did not find a reliable source establishing the exact 24-0 figure.

The broader question now is whether the Trump administration will continue pursuing voter-data cases in other states or seek further appeals.