In 2024, Virginia used the SAVE system to remove voters from registration rolls in the period before the election.
Posted by The NPR Politics Podcast, Checked
- Sources
- 4 support3 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 75%
The NPR Politics PodcastSep 29, 2026
Sources support the core claim: Virginia's 2024 program, run during the 90-day quiet period before the November election, removed about 1,600 registrations, and a Supreme Court filing states the DMV queried the SAVE database to identify individuals, with removals forwarded to local registrars during the Quiet Period.
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What was said
… And that case is going to be heard after the election. Um, but this election is is going to be interesting to watch for that. We did see in 2024 that Virginia was using SAVE in this period before the election, was taking voters off, and the Supreme Court did allow that to go forward, which had raised a lot of questions. In Virginia, it was an interesting case because they do have same day registration, so people who were removed who were eligible voters did have an opportunity to cast ballots still. …
The NPR Politics Podcast · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. A Supreme Court filing states that Virginia's DMV queried the SAVE database to determine whether individuals were noncitizens, and that the Department of Elections forwarded potential matches to local registrars for cancellation during the Quiet Period.[4]
Supports. Reuters and AP report that Virginia removed about 1,600 people from its voter rolls in the window before the election, and the Supreme Court allowed the removals to proceed days before the vote.[1][2]
Supports. The DOJ filing confirms Governor Youngkin's Executive Order 35 of August 7, 2024, which was 90 days before the November 5 election, set up a daily removal program that relied on unverified DMV data.[5]
Context. Youngkin's order was issued exactly 90 days before the election, and removals continued during the quiet period; Virginia's same-day registration let affected eligible voters still cast provisional ballots.[3][6]
Context. A 2026 CNN report says the Democratic governor who took office later ended the program and the lawsuit was settled; this does not change the 2024 facts.[7]
Sources
7 sources: 3 fact-checkers, 2 primary, 2 tier 2
- 1US Supreme Court revives Virginia's voter roll purge of ...reuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 2Virginia citizens make plans to vote after finding they've ...apnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 3Justice Department Suing Virginia for Removing Noncitizens from Voter Rolls?snopes.com · fact-checker · cited for: context
- 4In the Supreme Court of the United Statessupremecourt.gov · primary source · cited for: supports
- 5[PDF] Virginia Coalition for Immigrant Rights v. Beals - Department of Justicejustice.gov · primary source · cited for: supports
- 6Supreme Court allows Virginia purge of suspected noncitizen voterswashingtonpost.com · tier 2 · cited for: context
- 7Trump and GOP test precedent with aggressive voter roll purges | CNN Politicscnn.com · tier 2 · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- A federal court decision allows states to use the SAVE database to purge voter rolls.Mixed
- Virginia has same-day voter registration.True
- Approximately 27 states have used the SAVE program to verify immigration status for election purposes.True
- The National Voter Registration Act limits major changes to voter rolls 90 days before an election.True
- Federal law prohibits systematic voter purges in the 90 days before a federal election.True