Hobbs is right to protect voters’ information

Published 1:30 am Tuesday, September 30, 2025

In rejecting a demand from the federal government, Secretary of State Steve Hobbs has defended the rights of Washington voters and followed the law. He also has invited a lawsuit from the administration, a legal fight that should, once again, rebuke the overreach of President Donald Trump.

The U.S. Department of Justice recently requested a copy of Washington’s Voter Registration Database, including private information such as the driver’s license number and the last four digits of each registrant’s Social Security number. The stated purpose is to “ascertain Washington’s compliance with the list’s maintenance requirements of the National Voter Registration Act and the Help America Vote Act.”

Hobbs initially told The Columbian’s Editorial Board: “We’re looking at our options. I have to have a very good, compelling reason and have to make sure I’m following the law. Our state laws are very clear about keeping private information; we’ve got to be extra cautious.”

This week, Hobbs announced his decision: “As Washington state’s chief elections officer, I take my duty to protect voters and the sensitive information they entrust to the state very seriously. While we will provide the DOJ with the voter registration data that state law already makes public, we will not compromise the privacy of Washington voters by turning over confidential information that both state and federal law prohibit us from disclosing.”

That should be the bottom line. But the Department of Justice has filed lawsuits against eight states regarding their refusal to share voter information, and Washington can expect to be added to the list.

All of this surrounds the administration’s attempts to root out what it claims are hordes of illegal voters. The Department of Homeland Security is receiving the information from the Justice Department, and officials recently said: “This collaboration with the DOJ will lawfully and critically enable DHS to prevent illegal aliens from corrupting our republic’s democratic process and further ensure the integrity of our elections nationwide. Elections exist for the American people to choose their leaders, not illegal aliens.”

Elections should, indeed, be decided only by American citizens, but there are problems with the assertions.

For one, the Trump administration has demonstrated little concern for the security of information. This is the same administration that invited a journalist to a supposedly secure discussion of war plans; that allowed the Department of Government Efficiency to access sensitive Social Security information; and that released the personal information of a congresswoman — including Social Security number and life insurance information — to a rival campaign in the New Jersey gubernatorial race.

For another, the administration is reinforcing a trope that has been debunked. In 2017, during his first term as president, Trump established the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity to root out voter fraud. The commission was disbanded 11 months later, and a White House official said it “did not create any preliminary findings.” A comprehensive study by the Brennan Center for Justice pegged the rate of noncitizen voting at 0.0001 percent.

In the process of its snipe hunt, the administration is asking state election officials to expose the personal data of millions of voters while trying to root out a handful of illegal voters. It also is ignoring the constitutional mandate that states control elections.

Hobbs is right to reject a demand that has palpable risks and could yield, at best, minimal benefits.