Judge Strikes Down Federal Crackdown on Noncitizen Voting

A Miami federal judge has struck down a key part of the national crackdown on noncitizen voting. US District Judge David Leibowitz ruled Thursday that a law criminalizing such votes violates the Constitution. This decision hits hard at President Donald Trump's administration right before the midterm elections in November.

The court dismissed charges against Chelsea Cox, a Florida resident from Jamaica. She faced prosecution for allegedly casting a ballot in the 2020 presidential election back in October 2025. Judge Leibowitz found that only individual states can set voter qualifications under the US Constitution. The federal government cannot step in where state laws already apply.

Florida has its own statutes banning noncitizen voting. Since every state requires citizenship to vote, it is up to Florida to handle these cases. Judge Leibowitz wrote this clearly in his opinion. He noted that the Department of Justice should not prosecute when the state can and does act instead. This ruling applies strictly to Cox's case. It does not bind other judges nationwide. Still, about 45 similar cases remain pending across the country. At least four other defendants have raised the same constitutional challenge recently.

Court files reveal how Cox entered the United States as a tourist in 1999. She overstayed her visa later on. Then she used a fraudulent birth certificate from the US Virgin Islands to get a Florida driver's licence. This document helped her register to vote in 2012. The Virgin Islands is a territory in the Caribbean.

President Trump has claimed that noncitizen voting cost him the 2020 election. He says this rare occurrence was part of a Democratic plot to dilute Republican support. These claims are false and misleading. The Department of Justice has charged at least 60 people with the offence since January 2025 when Trump returned to office. Reuters reported that among 129 people charged with "voting by an alien" since 2021, none was accused of conspiring to sway an election. None faced charges for backing a candidate or being paid to vote. Most were lawful permanent residents who registered by mistake. Some received incorrect advice from an election worker or government clerk.

Cox's lawyer, Bruce Udolf, welcomed the court's decision immediately. He hopes authorities will not seek to deport her now given her declining health conditions. This case shows how state jurisdiction limits federal actions in voter qualification disputes. The timing is urgent as midterm approaches.