A federal judge in Washington, D.C. blocked some of President Donald Trump’s executive orders on election integrity, particularly provisions relating to providing documentary proof of citizenship before being allowed to register to vote.
Judge Colleen Coller Cotery of the District of Columbia, U.S. District Court, handed over the orders in response to a lawsuit filed by three separate groups of plaintiffs over five different provisions in the March 25th Trump Executive Order on election integrity.
Kollar-Kotelly rejected the request to block three provisions, but was granted a request to block two other provisions regarding proof of voters’ citizenship requirements.
The first blocked clause called on the Election Aid Commission to amend the standardized national voter registration form to request documentary proof of citizenship.
The second called for a federal agency that provides voter registration to people receiving public support, asking them to “assess” the individual’s citizenship status before doing so.
“Our constitution entrusts Congress and the state, not the president, with the power to regulate federal elections. In line with that distribution of power, Congress is currently discussing laws that affect many changes the president is intended to order.”
“The statutory delegation of powers to administrative agencies does not allow the president to short-circumvent the deliberation process of Congress through executive orders.”
Kollar-Kotelly said it would not block other clauses the group attempted to challenge. This covers data collection on email-in voting and citizenship status, calling the challenge “premature” and suggests it is the most challenging at the state level.
Earlier this month, the Republican-led House passed a bill that required proof of citizenship to vote in federal elections.
However, the measure still needs to pass the Senate before the president signs the law.
Meanwhile, 25 states are considering some form of position law. Voting Rights Lab, We are tracking these laws.
In total, 15 state constitutions have an explicit prohibition against non-citizen votes.
In addition to Trump’s civil rights order being shot down, two other federal judges from Maryland and New Hampshire also shot down additional orders from the president related to the K-12 Public Schools Ending Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) program on Thursday.
The ruling follows suits filed by the National Education Association, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the Maryland branch of the American Federation of Teachers.
The group allegedly violated the First Amendment rights granted by the Constitution, subject to federal funding, subject to whether or not educators crush the DEI program.
Fox News Digital contacted the White House to comment on this article, but did not receive a response in time for publication.
