Sixth Circuit Allows Ohio to Require Proof of Citizenship for BMV Voter Registration
2-1 ruling stays lower-court injunction weeks before registration deadline; LaRose calls it a victory for election integrity.
Tommy Flynn
A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has reinstated Ohio’s requirement that people registering to vote at Bureau of Motor Vehicles offices provide documentary proof of U.S. citizenship. The 2-1 decision stays a preliminary injunction issued in August by a Cleveland federal judge, allowing the 2025 state law to remain in effect while the appeal proceeds.
Judges Whitney Hermandorfer and John Nalbandian, both appointed by President Trump, formed the majority. They concluded that the advocacy groups challenging the law had not shown it would likely prevent eligible citizens from registering and that the lower-court order came too close to the election. Circuit Judge Kevin Ritz, appointed by President Biden, dissented.
Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose welcomed the ruling: “Huge legal victory for election integrity in Ohio tonight. Just got word that we effectively upheld our state law that ensures only U.S. citizens can register to vote in Ohio!” The state’s voter-registration deadline for the November 3 general election is October 5.
The law, enacted in 2025, requires proof such as a passport, birth certificate, or naturalization papers when a person seeks to register in conjunction with a driver’s license application or renewal. Challengers, including Red Wine & Blue and the Ohio Alliance for Retired Americans, argued it conflicted with the National Voter Registration Act’s requirement for the “minimum amount of information necessary.” District Judge Solomon Oliver Jr. had agreed and blocked enforcement.
The majority found the state is likely to prevail on appeal and that forcing an immediate system overhaul would impose significant costs. Ohio already requires an attestation of citizenship under penalty of perjury; the documentary-proof step applies specifically at the BMV.
The decision is a concrete pre-midterm win for citizenship verification. Similar requirements are under debate or litigation in other states as federal and state authorities expand enforcement against noncitizen registration and voting.
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