Trump DOJ demands Minnesota voting records over same-day registration 'vouching' concerns

By Fox News · Fox News

President Donald Trump's Justice Department is demanding records from Minnesota related to its voter registration practices, raising concerns about the state’s same-day "vouching" policy. The policy allows a registered voter to "vouch" for up to eight people seeking same-day registration, and it has come under fresh scrutiny amid broader concerns about election integrity in the wake of Minnesota’s massive welfare fraud scandal. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon wrote to Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon on Friday, requesting unredacted records covering the March 2024 primary and the November 2024 general election. Dhillon called on the state to hand over digital records related to same-day registrations, votes cast by same-day registrants, and audit and compliance records under the Help America Vote Act (HAVA). TRUMP OFFICIAL FREEZES MILLIONS IN SBA AID TO MINNESOTA, SLAMS WALZ’S POLICIES AS BREEDING ‘ENDEMIC’ FRAUD "The basis and purpose of this demand is to ensure Minnesota’s registration and voting practices are in compliance with federal law, particularly the minimum requirements under HAVA," Dhillon wrote in the letter she shared on X. "The Department of Justice is particularly concerned with votes and registrations accepted on the basis of ‘vouching’ from other registered voters or residential facility employees," Dhillon said, "as well as other same-day registration procedures." Minnesota’s election system has drawn scrutiny following legislation signed by Gov. Tim Walz in 2023 that provided for "Driver’s Licenses for All," allowing state-issued licenses regardless of immigration status. The policy also stipulates that the licenses carry no markings indicating citizenship, even though such IDs are among the forms of identification accepted during voter registration. Minnesota law separately allows same-day voter registration through a process known as "vouching," under which a registered voter can attest to the residency of up to eight other…