The United States Supreme Court on Friday issued an unsigned order that pauses a lower court ruling and allows the Trump administration to proceed with its expanded use of a federal database to help verify the citizenship status of registered voters.
The decision lifts restrictions imposed by U.S. District Judge Sparkle L. Sooknanan, who had blocked the Department of Homeland Security from permitting states to query a modified version of the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) system. The high court stated that the lower court order “inhibits the Federal Government’s efforts to assist state and local agencies in the proper administration of the midterm elections.”
The SAVE database, originally designed to verify eligibility for public benefits, was expanded following a March 2025 executive order by President Donald Trump. The modifications added records of U.S.-born citizens, granted access to Social Security numbers, and enabled bulk searches of voter rolls.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, joined by Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, dissented. Jackson described the ruling as a “questionable interim ruling” on statutory provisions the Court had not previously interpreted.
Federal law continues to prohibit systematic removal of voters from registration lists within 90 days of an election. The November 3, 2026, midterm elections fall within that window, limiting the potential for widespread purges before Election Day. Use of the system by states remains voluntary.