McClellan Statement on Federal Court Decision to Block Youngkin’s Voter Roll Purge

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan (VA-04) issued the following statement after a federal judge temporarily halted Governor Glenn Youngkin’s removal of approximately 1,600 voters from the Virginia voter rolls: 

“Mere weeks from the presidential election, Governor Glenn Youngkin attempted to purge 1,600 Virginians from the voter rolls without adequate notice or due process. These actions clearly violated federal law, which prohibits the systematic purging of voter rolls within 90 days of an election.  

“I welcome the U.S. District Judge Patricia Giles’ ruling to temporarily block Governor Youngkin’s order and prevent the disenfranchisement of thousands of Virginia voters. There is no evidence of widespread non-citizen voting in Virginia or in any state in our nation. The evidence clearly showed that Governor Youngkin’s last-minute voter purge illegally disenfranchised eligible voters, just weeks before the election. This included disenfranchising a Virginia citizen, despite the words ‘NEW CITIZEN’ stamped on their application. Governor Youngkin’s decision was clearly haphazard, political and contrary to the National Voter Registration Act.

“In a government by, of, and for the people, your vote is your power. As the daughter, granddaughter, and great-granddaughter of individuals who lived through Jim Crow and experienced voter discrimination, voting rights are personal to me. That’s why I passed The Voting Rights Act of Virginia in 2021, which has made Virginia a national leader in protecting voting accessx. I will continue my efforts to ensure every American can make their voices heard by passing the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act to restore the Voting Rights Act of 1965.” 

McClellan is a staunch voting rights advocate who has spent her career fighting to protect Americans’ right to exercise their fundamental right to vote. The first bill she passed in the House of Delegates made it easier to vote absentee in Virginia. In 2021, McClellan passed the Voting Rights Act of Virginia to make Virginia the first state in the South to pass a voting rights act. Now in Congress, McClellan is a member of the Task Force on Strengthening Democracy and an original cosponsor of the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Freedom to Vote Act.