Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson is calling on the U.S. Department of Justice to abandon its nationwide campaign for unredacted state voter files. In a recent filing in Salt Lake City federal court, lawyers for the Utah Attorney General’s Office argued that the government's legal theory under the Civil Rights Act of 1960 has failed in 16 previous federal court cases.
Assistant Solicitor General Mark Gillespie filed a notice of supplemental authority stating that sixteen federal courts have ruled against the DOJ's claims, including six recent dismissals involving Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, New York, West Virginia, Virginia, and New Mexico. Gillespie requested that the court dismiss the current complaint with prejudice.
Lieutenant Governor Henderson, who serves as Utah's chief election officer, also used social media to urge the DOJ to voluntarily dismiss its lawsuits against states, citing the lack of judicial wins for the federal government.
The lawsuit, United States v. Henderson, was filed by the Department of Justice on February 26, 2026. The federal government is seeking access to complete electronic statewide registration lists, including dates of birth and certain identification numbers. Attorney General Pamela Bondi and Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon have characterized the suits as oversight for election integrity.
Utah's legal strategy involves arguing that the 1960 statute was not intended for modern computerized databases and that the DOJ has failed to provide a valid purpose for the demand. Additionally, state lawyers contend the suit interferes with the constitutional balance of election administration.
The litigation follows a period where Utah's office conducted a citizenship audit of over 2 million records. The audit reported that 99.72% of registrants were confirmed U.S. citizens, while identifying and removing 27 noncitizens. The office also noted that 5,007 older registrations could not be fully verified through available systems.
Recently, Assistant Attorney General Dhillon sent a letter to Henderson warning of potential criminal liability regarding the retention of noncitizens on voter rolls. Utah Elections Director Ryan Cowley responded by directing future communications to legal counsel and stating that the state complies with both state and federal election laws.
The case remains pending before U.S. District Judge David Barlow. While several organizations, including the NAACP and the League of Women Voters of Utah, have intervened in the case, a hearing date has not yet been set by the court.
