RNC Sues Nevada Democrats for Allowing Non-Residents to Vote in State Elections

The Republican National Committee is taking decisive legal action to protect election integrity in Nevada, filing suit against Democrat Secretary of State Francisco Aguilar for enforcing a policy that permits certain non-residents—individuals who have never lived in the state, and in some cases never in the United States—to register and vote.

“Nevada Democrats are enforcing a policy that allows certain people who have never lived in Nevada to vote in Nevada elections,” said RNC Chairman Joe Gruters. “The RNC is taking action to defend Nevada’s Constitution and ensure Nevada elections are decided only by eligible Nevada voters.”

The lawsuit, brought by the RNC, the Nevada Republican Party, and Republican nominee for Nevada Secretary of State Jim Marchant, directly challenges this “never-resident voter” loophole as violating Nevada’s Constitution, which requires actual (not constructive) residency.

Nevada law, in alignment with the federal Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA), contains a provision that allows certain U.S. citizens who have never lived in Nevada (or, in some cases, never lived in the United States) to register and vote in the state.

• Standard residency requirement: Voters generally must have “actually” resided in Nevada (typically 30 days in the county/precinct).
• The exception: A U.S. citizen born overseas who has never resided in Nevada can qualify if their parent or legal guardian’s last place of residence before leaving the United States was in Nevada, and they meet other basic eligibility rules and have not voted elsewhere.

The suit seeks to strike down the provision, halt its enforcement, and remove ineligible voters from the rolls.

This latest lawsuit adds to mounting federal and state-level scrutiny of Nevada’s election system, where concerns over bloated voter rolls and lax maintenance have long plagued a battleground state known for razor-thin margins.

As the California Globe has reported, the U.S. Department of Justice sued Secretary Aguilar for refusing to provide unredacted voter rolls.

In response to the DOJ action, Secretary Aguilar has defended his office’s refusal to hand over fully unredacted voter data primarily on grounds of state privacy protections and limits on federal authority. He has argued that releasing highly sensitive personal information, such as full dates of birth, driver’s license numbers, and partial Social Security numbers, would violate Nevada privacy laws designed to safeguard voters from identity theft, harassment, or intimidation.

Aguilar and the Nevada Attorney General’s office, led by Democratic nominee for governor Aaron Ford, contend the DOJ’s broad demand exceeds federal authority under laws like the NVRA and HAVA and lacks sufficient justification, potentially risking eligible voters’ privacy without advancing legitimate list-maintenance goals. Nevada has sought dismissal of the suit on these grounds.

The DOJ has also established an Election Integrity Task Force and Prosecutions Unit in Nevada ahead of the June primary and November general election.

Earlier this year, Secretary of State Aguilar inactivated or canceled more than 315,000 voter registrations in just over a year, roughly 15% of the state’s rolls and one of the largest cleanups in recent Nevada history.

The RNC lawsuit builds on its strong track record of defending voter eligibility laws nationwide, including a major victory in North Carolina blocking non-resident voting and ongoing challenges to similar policies in Nebraska and Colorado. It also aligns with broader efforts in neighboring Arizona, where the RNC has petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold proof-of-citizenship requirements.

The California Globe will continue to closely follow the RNC’s challenge to the “never-resident” loophole and the ongoing federal scrutiny of voter rolls in Arizona, Nevada, and California.