The decision temporarily reinstates the expanded SAVE system, although federal law limits systematic voter roll removals during the 90 days preceding a federal election.
The Supreme Court has temporarily allowed the Trump administration to use an expanded version of SAVE to verify voters' citizenship before the November 3 election.
Supreme Court Restores Expanded SAVE Voter Verification Before Election – PHOTO: Shutterstock SAVE, originally created to verify citizenship and immigration status, was expanded after an executive order signed by Trump in March 2025.
The expanded system allows officials to consult additional Social Security Administration records and conduct simultaneous searches for multiple individuals.
Authorities can submit names, dates of birth, and full or partial Social Security numbers to search for matches in federal databases.
The administration argues that sharing this data allows state and local election officials to determine who meets citizenship requirements before the November elections.
The majority considered it likely that a 1996 federal law authorizes DHS to request and receive citizenship-related information, including from SSA.
The Court also noted that the federal government must respond to state and local requests aimed at verifying citizenship or immigration status.
Critics argue that some federal records may not accurately reflect later changes, especially when an immigrant obtains U.S. citizenship through naturalization.
The ruling itself acknowledges the case of a naturalized citizen from Louisiana whose Social Security records did not accurately reflect her current citizenship.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, joined by Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, also warned about privacy and potential harm to eligible voters.
The decision is temporary: it suspends the lower court's ruling while the appeal continues, and the case could eventually return to the Supreme Court.
Additionally, the National Voter Registration Act restricts systematic programs for removing voters from registration lists during the 90 days preceding a federal election.
The Court recognized that this rule reduces the immediate impact of its decision, although individualized inquiries can continue during this period.
The decision temporarily expands the tools available for verifying citizenship but does not definitively resolve the legal dispute over SAVE.
Before November 3, the challenge will be balancing accurate voter rolls with data protection and the right of eligible citizens to remain registered.
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SOURCE: Axios / The Center Square / League of Women Voters
