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February 10, 2025

DOJ guts Voting Section as 70% of Civil Rights Division lawyers depart

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Justice Department abandons voting rights enforcement as 70% of civil rights lawyers exit

Voting Section shrunk from roughly 30 attorneys to about 6

All Voting Section managers were reassigned to the complaint adjudication office

Active investigations were suspended under new leadership

250 lawyers (70%) of Civil Rights Division have departed

DOJ dropped lawsuit against Houston County, Georgia over Black voter power

DOJ dismissed voter purge challenges in Alabama and Virginia

New mission statement focuses on fraud rather than Voting Rights Act enforcement

📋Public Policy✊Civil Rights📊Electoral Systems

Test Your Knowledge

10
Q1

The plan eliminates no‑excuse mail voting for federal races; MIT’s Election Data Lab finds mail ballots reduce average polling‑place line‑wait times by:

Q2

A cable‑news chyron dubbed the measure the “Integrity Boost”; fact‑checkers note meta‑studies show documented fraud occurs in roughly ___ of ballots cast.

Q3

The order mandates voter‑ID verification via a national Real ID database; DHS Inspector‑General says error rates for naturalized citizens are about:

Q4

Senate bill S. 3056 would counter the order by reinstating which 2006 pre‑clearance coverage formula declared outdated in *Shelby County*?

Q5

Which Reconstruction‑era act first criminalized conspiracies to obstruct voting by force or intimidation?

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People, bills, and sources

Tamar Hagler

Chief of DOJ Voting Rights Section who was reassigned

Trump DOJ Leadership

Directed the restructuring of Civil Rights Division

Houston County, Georgia

Defendant in dropped lawsuit over Black voter discrimination

Federal Judge Mustafa Kasubhai

Blocked DOJ request for Oregon voter rolls

Leadership Conference on Civil Rights

Called for congressional oversight of DOJ changes

What you can do

1

Without federal oversight, state and local election officials face less accountability for voter access issues

2

Track whether your state has implemented new voting restrictions since federal enforcement collapsed

3

Civil rights organizations are now the primary entities challenging discriminatory election practices