Miami judge dismisses noncitizen voting case, finds federal law unconstitutional

On Thursday 1 October 2026, US District Judge David Leibowitz in Miami dismissed a federal case against Chelsea Cox, a Florida resident originally from Jamaica, who was charged in October 2025 with illegally voting in the 2020 election. 1 2 He found the law criminalizing noncitizen voting unconstitutional, writing that under the US Constitution only states, not Congress, can set voter qualifications; the ruling appears to be the first time a federal court has found the 1996 law unconstitutional. 1 2 Because every state requires citizenship to vote, Leibowitz said it was up to Florida, not the Justice Department, to prosecute Cox, writing that Florida "can and does" punish the conduct. 1 2

The ruling applies only to Cox's case and does not bind other judges, though about 45 similar cases are pending and at least four other defendants have raised the same challenge; Reuters noted judges in those cases may find his reasoning persuasive. 1 2 In a court filing the Justice Department had argued that Congress, not the states, was best equipped to handle immigration and foreign affairs, writing that "Foreign interference in elections is clearly within the purview of Congress." Neither the White House nor the Justice Department immediately responded to Reuters' requests for comment. 1 According to court filings, Cox entered the US as a tourist in 1999, overstayed her visa, and used a fraudulent US Virgin Islands birth certificate to get a Florida driver's license and register to vote in 2012; she voted in federal elections from 2012 to 2020, but only 2020 fell within the statute of limitations. 1 2

The decision is a setback for the Trump administration, which has made noncitizen voting a centrepiece of its election-fraud push ahead of the November midterms; the Justice Department has charged at least 60 people since January 2025. 1 2 Both outlets, citing a Reuters investigation, say 129 people have been charged with "voting by an alien"; none was accused of conspiring to sway an election, backing a candidate or being paid, and most were lawful permanent residents who registered by mistake or on bad advice from an election worker or clerk. 1 2 Trump has said stricter enforcement of documented citizenship is needed for election integrity and falsely claims fraud cost him the 2020 election; critics say the crackdown exaggerates a rare problem. 1 2

Cox's lawyer, Bruce Udolf, welcomed the ruling and said he hoped the government would not seek to deport her, citing her declining health. 1 2