{"id":2588064,"date":"2026-04-07T13:11:02","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T17:11:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/lawsuit-seeks-to-stop-people-who-have-never-lived-in-virginia-from-voting-there\/"},"modified":"2026-04-07T13:15:21","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T17:15:21","slug":"lawsuit-seeks-to-stop-people-who-have-never-lived-in-virginia-from-voting-there","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/lawsuit-seeks-to-stop-people-who-have-never-lived-in-virginia-from-voting-there\/","title":{"rendered":"Lawsuit: Allowing &#8216;Never Residents&#8217; To Vote In Virginia Is Illegal"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Flawsuit-seeks-to-stop-people-who-have-never-lived-in-virginia-from-voting-there%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2588064&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>A lawsuit challenges Virginia\u2019s practice of allowing people who have never resided in the state to vote there, arguing it violates the Virginia Constitution\u2019s residency requirements. Filed by the Republican National Committee, the Restoring Integrity and Trust in Elections (RITE) PAC, and a Virginia voter, the suit targets the Virginia State Board of Elections and other officials, and asks the Circuit Court for the City of Richmond to declare the challenged provisions unconstitutional and to issue injunctions stopping registrations and absentee ballots from never-residents. The plaintiffs contend Virginia\u2019s implementation of UOCAVA creates a \u201ccovered voter\u201d category that substitutes a parent\u2019s last Virginia address for the registrant\u2019s residence, effectively enfranchising individuals who have never lived in Virginia. They argue the state cannot override the residency requirement by statute or through a legal fiction based on someone else\u2019s residency.The article situates this within broader changes to UOCAVA, which has <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >increasingly included nonmilitary overseas citizens<\/a>, and it cites comments from RITE\u2019s Justin Riemer. The piece was written by Shawn Fleetwood for The Federalist.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:2016-03-23_18_43_28_%22Welcome_to_Virginia%22_sign_along_northbound_Interstate_81_entering_Washington_County,_Virginia_from_Bristol,_Tennessee.jpg\">Famartin\/Wikimedia Commons\/<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 4.0<\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/07\/lawsuit-seeks-to-stop-people-who-have-never-lived-in-virginia-from-voting-there\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Lawsuit%20Seeks%20To%20Stop%20People%20Who%20Have%20Never%20Lived%20In%20Virginia%20From%20Voting%20There&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/07\/lawsuit-seeks-to-stop-people-who-have-never-lived-in-virginia-from-voting-there\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=Lawsuit%20Seeks%20To%20Stop%20People%20Who%20Have%20Never%20Lived%20In%20Virginia%20From%20Voting%20There&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/07\/lawsuit-seeks-to-stop-people-who-have-never-lived-in-virginia-from-voting-there\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/07\/lawsuit-seeks-to-stop-people-who-have-never-lived-in-virginia-from-voting-there\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Lawsuit%20Seeks%20To%20Stop%20People%20Who%20Have%20Never%20Lived%20In%20Virginia%20From%20Voting%20There&amp;body=%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/04\/07\/lawsuit-seeks-to-stop-people-who-have-never-lived-in-virginia-from-voting-there\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>Virginia election officials are violating the state&rsquo;s constitution by allowing individuals who have never resided in the commonwealth to vote in its elections, a lawsuit filed Monday alleges. <\/p>\n<p>Brought by the Republican National Committee (RNC), Restoring Integrity and Trust in Elections (RITE) PAC, and a Virginia voter against the Virginia State Board of Elections and other state election officials, the <a href=\"https:\/\/prod-static.gop.com\/media\/documents\/VA_Never-Resident_Complaint_FILED_1775498639.pdf?utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=ncl_amplify&amp;utm_campaign=260406-rnc_files_lawsuit_to_stop_non_resident_voting_in_virginia&amp;utm_content=ncl-NFmm5ndb3t&amp;utm_term=&amp;_nlid=NFmm5ndb3t&amp;_nhids=ncM4MFjxUpN5ls\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">legal challenge<\/a> contests <a href=\"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/vacode\/title24.2\/chapter4.1\/section24.2-452\/?utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=ncl_amplify&amp;utm_campaign=260406-rnc_files_lawsuit_to_stop_non_resident_voting_in_virginia&amp;utm_content=ncl-9dMVRXt4fN&amp;utm_term=&amp;_nlid=9dMVRXt4fN&amp;_nhids=ncM4MFjxUpN5ls\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">provisions of state law<\/a> collectively permitting individuals who &ldquo;were born outside of the United States&rdquo; and &ldquo;have never resided in the Commonwealth&rdquo; to register and vote in Virginia elections. This practice, the plaintiffs claim, violates the Virginia Constitution&rsquo;s residency requirements governing electoral contests.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-78272531\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&ldquo;The Virginia Constitution draws a clear line: voting is reserved to residents of the Commonwealth and of the precinct in which they vote,&rdquo; RITE PAC President and CEO Justin Riemer said in a statement. &ldquo;That requirement cannot be overridden by statute or replaced with a legal fiction based on someone else&rsquo;s residency.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The challenged provisions deal with Virginia&rsquo;s implementation of the <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/uocava\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA)<\/a>. As The Federalist previously <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/12\/12\/five-ways-to-start-fixing-the-uocava-mess-that-lets-people-abroad-cast-insecure-votes-in-swing-states\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a>, the federal law &ldquo;was originally&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.govinfo.gov\/content\/pkg\/STATUTE-69\/pdf\/STATUTE-69-Pg584.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">intended<\/a>&nbsp;to serve only active military and federal personnel stationed overseas [but] is now serving mostly nonmilitary citizens,&rdquo; with civilians eclipsing military voters in the 2020 election.<\/p>\n<p>According to the RNC and RITE PAC, Virginia&rsquo;s &ldquo;current statutory scheme&rdquo; for individuals &ldquo;covered&rdquo; to vote overseas &ldquo;includes a category of &lsquo;covered voter&rsquo; that explicitly dispenses with the Virginia Constitution&rsquo;s residency requirement and substitutes a parent or legal guardian&rsquo;s last-eligible voting location as the now-adult registrant&rsquo;s Virginia voting residence.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Put another way, the state is allegedly permitting individuals born to U.S. military personnel and civilians overseas to register and vote in the commonwealth&rsquo;s elections based on their parents&rsquo; last-eligible Virginia address &mdash; despite having never resided in Virginia themselves. <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;That practice violates the Virginia Constitution,&rdquo; the plaintiffs&rsquo; lawsuit reads. &ldquo;Virginia may extend registration and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-republicans-urge-dismissal-of-doj-lawsuit-against-georgia-election-law\/\" title=\"House Republicans Urge Dismissal Of DOJ Lawsuit Against Georgia Election Law\">absentee voting procedures<\/a> to qualified Virginia voters abroad, including military and overseas citizens who previously resided in Virginia and remain Virginia domiciliaries for voting purposes. But Virginia may not create <em>bona fide<\/em> Virginia voters out of individuals who have never resided in Virginia, solely by reference to a parent&rsquo;s historical voting eligibility.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The RNC and Co. requested that the Circuit Court for the City of Richmond to declare the challenged statutory provisions as &ldquo;unconstitutional and void as applied to registration or voting in Virginia by persons who are not residents of the Commonwealth and, therefore, ineligible to vote under&rdquo; the Virginia Constitution.<\/p>\n<p>The plaintiffs further asked that the court issue preliminary and permanent injunctions that enjoin defendants from &ldquo;accepting or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/state-official-questions-delay-of-100000-voter-registrations-in-virginia\/\" title=\"... Official Questions Delay of 100,000 ...r Registrations in ...\">processing voter registration applications<\/a> from individuals who do not and have never resided in Virginia and from issuing absentee ballots to or accepting, processing, or counting absentee ballots from such never-resident registrants.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><em>For more election news and updates, visit&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/electionbriefing.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">electionbriefing.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He is a co-recipient of the 2025 Dao Prize for Excellence in Investigative Journalism. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics and RealClearHealth. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Shawn Fleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ShawnFleetwood\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@ShawnFleetwood<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/shawnfleetwood\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/election-law\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Election Law<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/elections\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Elections<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/lawsuit\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Lawsuit<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/overseas-voters\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">overseas voters<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/residency\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">residency<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/restoring-integrity-and-trust-in-elections\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Restoring Integrity and Trust in Elections<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/rnc\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">RNC<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/uocava\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">UOCAVA<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/virginia\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Virginia<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Suit: VA lets nonresidents vote, violates constitution<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2588065,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Virginia.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546,33651],"tags":[77333,4585,5468,74332],"class_list":["post-2588064","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist","category-the-western-journal","tag-electionlaw","tag-lawsuit","tag-virginia","tag-votingrights"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Virginia.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2588064","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2588064"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2588064\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2588068,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2588064\/revisions\/2588068"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2588065"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2588064"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2588064"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2588064"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}