A federal judge in Miami ruled that the 1996 law making it a federal crime for a noncitizen to vote is unconstitutional, and he threw out the case against a Jamaican woman accused of voting illegally in Florida. Judge David Leibowitz, who was appointed by President Joe Biden, issued the ruling on Thursday, October 1, saying only the states, not Congress, can decide who is qualified to vote.
Story Snapshot
- The judge dismissed the federal case against Chelsea Cox, a Jamaican national who lives in Florida.
- He found that the Constitution lets states, not Congress, set voter qualifications.
- According to reports, it appears to be the first time a federal court has found the 1996 law unconstitutional.
- The Justice Department has not said whether it will appeal. About 45 similar cases are pending.
What the Miami Ruling Did and Why It Matters
Prosecutors charged Cox in October 2025 with voting illegally in the 2020 election. According to court filings, she came to the United States as a tourist in 1999 and stayed after her visa ran out in 2000. The filings say she used a fake U.S. Virgin Islands birth certificate to get a Florida driver’s license, registered to vote in 2012 and voted in federal elections through 2020. Only the 2020 vote could be charged. The others were past the statute of limitations, which is the legal deadline for bringing a case.
Miami judge rules federal ban on noncitizen voting unconstitutional
Judge Leibowitz dismissed Chelsea Cox’s case, saying only states set voter qualifications; the ruling binds that case, with ~45 similar cases pending.
— EJPH News (@ejphnews) October 2, 2026
Her lawyers argued that the Constitution leaves voter qualifications to the states, so Florida, not the federal government, would have to prosecute her. Leibowitz agreed. He wrote that the state can still act: “Can the State of Florida prohibit and punish the exact conduct Defendant Cox allegedly engaged in here? This has already been decided elsewhere and is not addressed here: Florida can and does.” The ruling does not say noncitizens may vote. It says who gets to punish it.
How This Fits Into the Bigger Legal Fight
The law at issue is 18 U.S. Code Section 611, known as “voting by an alien.” Congress passed it in 1996. The Justice Department argued that Congress, not the states, is best equipped to handle immigration and foreign affairs. The Trump administration has made these cases a priority and has charged at least 60 people since January 2025.
The ruling applies only to the Cox case. It does not bind other judges, which means they do not have to follow it. About 45 noncitizen voting cases are pending around the country, and at least four other defendants have raised the same argument. Judges in those cases may read the Miami decision and decide for themselves.
What the Law Says Now and What Could Change
Every state already limits voting in state and federal races to citizens. For readers who care about clean elections, the concern is plain. Five weeks before the November 3 election, a judge has said the main federal law against noncitizen voting cannot be used in his courtroom. Federal prosecutors elsewhere can still bring these cases unless their own judges rule the same way.
Cox’s lawyer, Bruce Udolf, said the ruling “cries out for discretion by government officials and they’d be well-advised to walk away from this without further reprisal.” He said he hopes she will not be deported, citing her health. Cox has not been convicted of anything, and the federal charge against her is now dismissed.
What to Watch Next
Neither the White House nor the Justice Department immediately responded to requests for comment, according to reports, and the department has not said whether it will appeal. An appeal is a request for a higher court to review the ruling. One from Miami would go to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta. The election is Tuesday, November 3.
Sources:
aljazeera.com, usnews.com, reuters.com, ground.news
