Judge keeps block on New Hampshire’s proof of citizenship law in place, for now

A federal judge Thursday refused to pause a previous ruling that struck down New Hampshire’s restrictive documentary proof of citizenship law while the state’s appeal is pending before the First Circuit Court of Appeals. 

In May, U.S. District Judge Samantha Elliott — an appointee of former President Joe Biden — found the Granite State’s 2024 law requiring proof of citizenship for voting was an “unjustifiable burden on the right to vote in violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendments” and blocked the state from enforcing it.  

New Hampshire’s law, which is a key component of the Trump-backed SAVE America Act that’s been stalled in the U.S. Senate for months, would require all voters to present a birth certificate, passport or naturalization papers in order to register to vote or cast a ballot. The New Hampshire Youth Movement sued over the law, arguing that it unfairly burdens the right to vote for New Hampshire residents. 

In her May ruling, Elliott noted that New Hampshire voters who lacked necessary documents to prove their citizenship when voting instead relied on the state’s Qualified Voter Affidavit (QVA), which has them sign a sworn statement that they’re eligible to vote under penalty of perjury.

The pro-voting plaintiffs argued that eliminating QVA in favor of requiring voters to show proof of citizenship led to at least 100 voters being turned away in last year’s municipal elections because they lacked proper documentation. 

But Elliott blasted New Hampshire officials for failing to track the effect of the new law on voter turnout.

“The record evidence does not represent the full panoply of New Hampshire voters who were unable to register to vote in an election in 2025 because they did not possess [documentary proof of citizenship],” she wrote.