Iowa Accuses Biden Administration of Illegally Blocking Access to Citizenship Records

Iowa’s attorney general and secretary of state filed a lawsuit against federal immigration officials on Tuesday, alleging violations of the law concerning noncitizens registered to vote in the state. This action follows Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate’s request to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to verify the citizenship status of 2,176 registered voters suspected of being noncitizens.

Initially, an immigration agent indicated that some individuals on Iowa’s list were indeed noncitizens. However, the USCIS headquarters later denied the request for the names of these individuals, prompting the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa.

The complaint argues that federal officials are infringing upon a federal law that entitles state authorities to access citizenship information for legally authorized purposes. Iowa is seeking a court order to compel the agency to provide the names of any noncitizens identified on their voter rolls.

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird expressed frustration over what she described as the Biden-Harris Administration’s refusal to disclose crucial election integrity data. “The law is clear: voters must be American citizens,” she stated, accusing federal officials of withholding essential information regarding noncitizens in the state’s voter registration.

The lawsuit names key figures, including U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and USCIS Director Ur M. Jaddou, citing their departments as the responsible parties in this matter. A spokesperson from the Department of Homeland Security declined to comment due to the ongoing litigation.

The state’s attempt to confirm the citizenship status of registered voters comes amid prior legal controversies. Just days before the November 5 election, the League of United Latin American Citizens and several naturalized citizens filed a suit claiming that Pate’s directive to challenge certain voter registrations violated federal election law.

A U.S. District Judge, Stephen Locher, dismissed their request to block Pate’s directive on November 3, allowing for challenges to the ballots of those identified on the noncitizen list to proceed at polling places.