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The Republican National Committee (RNC) is leading a lawsuit against Virginia, accusing the state of violating state law by accepting ballots from people who have never resided in the state.
Under federal law, military service members stationed overseas and their spouses are allowed to cast absentee ballots based upon the state of their last residence. But a Virginia statute allows for voters who have never lived in the state to cast a ballot based on Virginia being their parents’ last eligible voting location.
“The Virginia Constitution clearly states you must show proof of residency in order to vote in Virginia elections, so what we’re trying to do here at the RNC is make sure that Virginia elections are truly for Virginians and close that loophole where people who have never even lived in the state or sometimes even the country so they cannot register to vote in Virginia,” RNC Election Integrity Communications Director Ally Triolo told Fox News Digital.
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Chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC) Joe Gruters speaks during the RNC Winter Meeting at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort in Santa Barbara, California, on January 23, 2026. (Patrick T. Fallon/AFP)
The RNC, RITE PAC, and conservative grassroots organizer Matthew Hurtt filed for injunctive relief in the Circuit Court for the city of Richmond, against the Virginia State Board of Elections and the Virginia Department of Elections on Monday.
A Michigan voter inserts her absentee voter ballot into a drop box in Troy, Michigan. (Paul Sancya/AP)
“People who have never lived in Virginia — or even in the United States — should not be voting in Virginia’s elections,” Republican Party Chairman Gruters said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “Virginia officials are ignoring the Virginia Constitution and allowing ineligible voters to cast ballots. The RNC and RITE PAC are taking this action to enforce the law and ensure non-residents are not diluting the votes of Virginians.”
Hurtt, who also serves as the Chairman of the Arlington GOP, referred Fox News Digital to an email he sent to the Arlington GOP committee members, explaining why he joined the lawsuit.
“Through this lawsuit, we are asking the court to declare the relevant statutes unconstitutional and to require election officials to limit voting to individuals who meet Virginia’s residency requirements,” Hurtt wrote. “This effort is about ensuring that Virginia elections are conducted in accordance with the Constitution and that the rules governing voter eligibility are applied consistently and lawfully.”
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Stickers that read “Presidential Election I Voted 2024” are displayed on a table on the first day of Virginia’s in-person early voting at Long Bridge Park Aquatics and Fitness Center on September 20, 2024 in Arlington, Virginia (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
The lawsuit named seven elected officials as defendants as well, including Fairfax County Electoral Board General Registrar Eric Spicer. Fairfax GOP chairman Steve Knotts previously praised Spicer for his efforts to strengthen election integrity in the county.
“Defendant Spicer has registered voters who stated on their registration forms: ‘I am a U.S. citizen living outside the country, I have never lived in the United States.’This practice violates the Virginia Constitution,” the lawsuit stated.
Similar lawsuits have been filed by the RNC against Michigan, Arizona and North Carolina over election officials counting ballots from “never residents.”
In April 2025, an appeals court in North Carolina ruled in favor of RNC, determining that the state’s election board was violating state law by allowing voters who never resided in the state. State officials appealed the decision to North Carolina’s Supreme Court, but the case was dismissed.
“We fought this in North Carolina,” Triolo said. “We had a successful win, and we have two more active cases fighting the same fight in Arizona and Michigan. We are committed at the RNC to stopping any abuse of our elections. We know that voters deserve free, fair, and secure elections. So the RNC is confident with its win that we already had on this issue. We’ll continue to see more wins moving forward.”
Triolo shared with Fox News Digital that the RNC has more than 120 active lawsuits across the country in its fight to close loopholes and strengthen election integrity.
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“The RNC is fighting tooth and nail to protect the ballot box. This is one of our key priorities here, which is ensuring that our elections are fair, they’re free, they’re transparent, they are secure,” Triolo said.
The Virginia Department of Elections declined to comment.
