Federal law has long barred most states from conducting systematic purges of voter rolls within 90 days of a federal election. That window — roughly three months before voters head to the polls — was written into the National Voter Registration Act to stop eligible voters from being removed too close to Election Day to fix any errors. It’s been on the books for decades.
The legal challenge
Republicans are now pressing federal courts to reinterpret that protection. The push asks judges to read the 90-day restriction in a way that would allow purges to continue closer to elections — a significant departure from how the law has been applied since it took effect in the 1990s.
The effort comes as voter roll maintenance has become an increasingly contested front in election law fights across the country. Supporters of broader purge authority argue that outdated rolls create opportunities for fraud. Opponents say late-cycle removals — even when accidental — strip eligible voters of their rights with no time to appeal before ballots are cast.
Washington state runs its own voter roll maintenance program under state and federal guidelines; it wasn’t named in the court actions driving this push. But any ruling that reshapes the 90-day rule would apply broadly, since the restriction covers most states under the NVRA.
No federal court has yet sided with the Republican-backed reinterpretation. The legal fight is ongoing — and depending on how courts rule, the outcome could affect how states handle roll maintenance in the months leading up to the November 2026 midterms.
