California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford have spearheaded a coalition of 19 attorneys general in filing a motion for a preliminary injunction. The aim is to prevent the Trump Administration from enforcing Executive Order No. 14248, which is described as an unconstitutional attempt to impose broad voting restrictions nationwide.
The Executive Order seeks to require state election officials to enforce documentary proof of citizenship for voter registration, disregard mail ballots received after Election Day, and withhold federal funding from states that do not comply.
On April 3, the attorneys general filed a lawsuit against this Executive Order, emphasizing that the regulation of elections is the domain of States and Congress rather than the President. Despite this legal challenge, steps have been taken by the Trump Administration to implement the order. In response, the coalition argues in their motion that they are likely to succeed on legal grounds and highlights potential irreparable harm without court intervention.
Attorney General Bonta stated: “Last month, my fellow attorneys general and I sued President Trump over his unconstitutional elections Executive Order. We are now back in court because our States are facing imminent and concrete harms.”
The motion claims that the order compromises states' ability to maintain election integrity. It also places immediate demands on state election officials due to new documentary proof requirements. These officials must quickly adapt their procedures or risk losing federal funds.
Additionally, under threat of enforcement by the United States Attorney General and conditional funding changes, states would need significant resources for training local election officials and educating voters about new ballot receipt deadlines.
Joining Attorneys General Bonta and Ford in this action are their counterparts from Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin.
A copy of the motion is available online.