Supreme Court clears Trump administration to use expanded voter database

The U.S. Supreme Court has allowed the Trump administration to use an expanded federal citizenship database as states review voter rolls ahead of elections.

According to NBC News, the justices voted 6-3 on Friday to grant the government’s emergency request, temporarily blocking lower court rulings that found changes to the database likely unlawful.

The expanded Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements programme, known as SAVE, incorporates Social Security data and allows bulk citizenship searches.

Critics argue the system contains errors that could wrongly flag eligible voters, particularly naturalized citizens. Supporters say it helps states verify voter eligibility.

The court noted that federal law restricts broad voter-roll purges close to elections, limiting the ruling’s immediate impact, although individualized voter checks remain permitted.