A federal judge in New Jersey blocked the Justice Department from gaining access to the state’s unredacted voter rolls on Wednesday. District Judge Zahid Quraishi, a Biden appointee, ruled that handing over the rolls could give rise to privacy concerns for voters.

New Jersey Voter Roll Controversy

The ruling is the latest defeat for the administration after the DOJ sued Utah, Oklahoma, Kentucky, West Virginia, and New Jersey for access to their voter rolls earlier this year. The administration argued that Title III of the Civil Rights Act granted federal authorities access to the lists, but Quraishi disagreed.

Quraishi’s ruling also comes amid a statewide controversy related to noncitizen voting in New Jersey. New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill admitted that a ‘serious software error’ led to the mistaken registration of roughly 6,600 noncitizens through the state’s Motor Vehicle System.

Sen. Andy Kim, D-N.J., said of the incident, ‘In New Jersey, we absolutely need to have accountability for what happened.’ Sherrill said she immediately ordered an investigation after the error was discovered and that the state’s Division of Elections is removing ineligible voters from the rolls.

Original reporting: Fox News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.