No, a judge didn't legalize noncitizen voting. Here's what the Miami ruling actually says

A federal judge in Miami has ruled that a decades-old federal law making it a crime for noncitizens to vote in federal elections is unconstitutional. Social media posts quickly framed the decision as a judge "legalizing" noncitizen voting. That is not what the ruling does.

## What the judge decided

U.S. District Judge David Leibowitz of the Southern District of Florida dismissed federal charges against a Jamaican national accused of illegally voting in the 2020 election, according to Reuters and CBS News. In a 31-page order issued Oct. 1, Leibowitz found that the federal statute used to charge her, 18 U.S.C. § 611, went beyond Congress's power.

His reasoning centered on who gets to decide voter qualifications. Under the Constitution, Leibowitz wrote, that power belongs to the states, not Congress. "Congress does not have the constitutional power to enact this statute," he wrote, according to CBS News.

Reuters reported that this is the first time a federal court has declared the 1996 law unconstitutional. The ruling applies to her case only. A legal blog that tracks the Southern District of Florida described it as an "as applied" ruling rather than one striking the law down for everyone.

## What it does not change

Noncitizens still cannot legally vote in federal elections. Every state requires U.S. citizenship to vote, Reuters reported, and the judge said it was up to Florida, not the Justice Department, to prosecute her for breaking that requirement.

According to CBS News, the ruling leaves in place:

- State laws that ban noncitizen voting
- Florida's ability to prosecute the woman under state law
- A separate federal law that makes it a crime to falsely claim U.S. citizenship

## The case behind the ruling

Prosecutors say the woman overstayed a tourist visa more than 20 years ago, obtained a Florida driver's license using fraudulent documents and voted in multiple federal elections starting in 2012, CBS News reported. Her vote in 2020 led to the federal charge.

Her attorney, Bruce Udolf, told CBS News his client was "gratified" and called the ruling a "huge relief."

## Both sides of the argument

The Justice Department appealed the decision, according to CBS News. Before the ruling, federal prosecutors had argued that Congress is the right body to handle the issue, writing that "foreign interference in elections is clearly within the purview of Congress," Reuters reported.

Judge Leibowitz, who was nominated by President Joe Biden, said the government's constitutional defense was weak.

Noncitizen voting prosecutions are rare. A Reuters investigation found she was one of 129 people charged under the "voting by an alien" law, and that most of those accused were lawful permanent residents who registered by mistake or were given bad advice by election workers. The Justice Department has charged at least 60 people with noncitizen voting since President Donald Trump returned to office in January 2025, Reuters reported.

## Why it matters beyond one case

The ruling arrives as Congress debates the SAVE America Act, which would require documentary proof of citizenship to register for federal elections. The libertarian Cato Institute noted that the decision raises questions for that bill, but supporters could argue it regulates how people register rather than who is qualified to vote, a line the Supreme Court has drawn before.

## What happens next

The case now goes to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, which will decide whether to uphold or reverse the ruling. A single district judge's ruling does not bind other federal courts.

For voters, nothing changes at the ballot box. You must be a U.S. citizen to register and vote in federal elections, and states continue to enforce that rule under their own laws. If you see a post claiming a judge "made it legal" for noncitizens to vote, that claim is false.