A federal judge in Miami has dismissed a charge against a Jamaican woman accused of voting in the 2020 US election, ruling that Congress lacked the constitutional authority to enact the law used to prosecute her.
US District Judge David Leibowitz issued the ruling on Thursday, 1 October, in the case of Chelsea Cox, a Florida resident charged under a federal law that makes it a crime for noncitizens to vote in elections for federal office. His decision applies to Cox’s case and does not bind judges hearing similar challenges elsewhere. (reuters.com)
Why the judge dismissed the charge
Leibowitz found that the Constitution leaves voter qualifications to individual states rather than Congress. On that basis, he dismissed the federal charge against Cox. Florida has its own laws governing who may vote and can prosecute violations of those laws, the judge said.
The decision does not mean noncitizens may vote in US federal elections. It addresses whether Congress had the power to create this particular federal offence. The federal provision at issue remains in the US Code, and the ruling does not automatically end other prosecutions. (reuters.com, uscode.house.gov)
The case against Cox
Cox was charged in October 2025 over a vote cast in the 2020 election. According to court filings described by Reuters, prosecutors alleged that she used a fraudulent US Virgin Islands birth certificate to obtain a Florida driving licence and register to vote. The dismissal resolves the federal charge considered by Leibowitz; it is not a finding that Cox was eligible to vote. (reuters.com)
Federal prosecutors had argued that Congress could legislate in this area because of its authority over immigration and foreign affairs. The Justice Department had not immediately commented on the ruling when Reuters reported it. (reuters.com)
What happens beyond this case?
Other defendants have challenged the same federal law. Leibowitz’s reasoning may be considered in those cases, but their judges must decide the issue independently. Any wider change to how the law is applied would depend on further court decisions or action by Congress.
The ruling comes as President Donald Trump’s administration increases prosecutions over noncitizen voting ahead of November’s midterm elections. Reuters reported that about 45 similar cases were pending nationwide. Cox’s lawyer welcomed the dismissal and said he hoped authorities would not seek to deport her. (reuters.com)
