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Secretary of State Steve Simon calls voter rolls request 'bizarre, disturbing'
Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon appeared on FOX 9's All Day on Monday and called AG Pam Bondi's request to turn over Minnesota's voter rolls both bizarre and disturbing. Simon calls it a political chip to get ICE agents out of Minnesota, and they won't release private data. Simon also says what ICE is doing in Minnesota is way beyond the stated mission.
ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - A federal judge has thrown out the Trump administration’s push to get Minnesota’s complete voter rolls, a move state leaders say protects voters’ privacy.
Minnesota voter roll court ruling
What we know:
The U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota has dismissed a 2025 lawsuit from the Trump administration that sought the state’s entire voter registration list.
The court found that the federal government had no basis under the Civil Rights Act of 1960, or the Help America Vote Act, to demand the voter list, calling the effort a "fishing expedition."
Dig deeper:
The court’s decision means Minnesota officials will not have to turn over unredacted voter information to the federal government.
The Trump administration has filed similar lawsuits in 23 states and the District of Columbia, losing every single case so far. Courts in Michigan, Oregon, California, Maryland, Colorado, Wisconsin, Maine, Arizona, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Illinois, New Jersey, Kentucky, Virginia, New York, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, the District of Columbia and Nevada have all rejected the administration’s demands for full voter rolls.
What they're saying:
Following the rule, Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon issued the following statement: "My responsibility to Minnesota voters starts and ends with the law. The private data entrusted to my office does not belong to the federal government, and I’m pleased that the judge agreed. This ruling should be a relief to Minnesotans, as it was to residents in the 21 other states plus the District of Columbia where the DOJ has lost in court in its sweeping attempt to collect voters’ private information."
"Minnesota runs the highest-turnout, most secure, and frankly best elections in America, and the Trump administration had no legal right to our unredacted voters rolls with Minnesotans’ sensitive personal information," said Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison in a statement.
The Source: Information provided by the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office.