New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez joined a 19-state coalition challenging the order, which included proof-of-citizenship requirements for voter registration.

Organ Mountain News report

ALBUQUERQUE - A federal court has permanently blocked key provisions of a 2025 election executive order issued by President Donald Trump, including a documentary proof-of-citizenship requirement for voter registration, New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez said Wednesday.

The U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts granted a permanent injunction requested by Torrez and a coalition of 19 attorneys general challenging Executive Order No. 14248.

The order, issued March 25, 2025, sought to require documentary proof of citizenship for voter registration, force states to disregard mail ballots cast by Election Day but received by election officials days later and withhold federal funding from states that did not comply, according to Torrez’s office.

“Being able to freely cast your vote is at the heart of our democracy, and I will continue fighting to protect that right for all New Mexicans,” Torrez said. “This was nothing more than an unconstitutional attempt by the president to seize control of our elections and circumvent the will of the people.”

Torrez said the court’s order upheld separation of powers and ensured significant changes to voting procedures follow legislative and constitutional processes.

“Safeguarding access to the ballot box — while maintaining secure and orderly elections — requires careful, collaborative policymaking, not abrupt federal mandates that risk disenfranchising eligible voters,” he said.

The coalition filed its lawsuit in April 2025, secured a preliminary injunction in June 2025 and defeated the Trump administration’s motion to dismiss in September 2025. The coalition filed a motion for a permanent injunction in December 2025, and the court heard oral argument in February.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford co-led the April 2025 lawsuit. Attorneys general from Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin also joined the case, along with Torrez.

Torrez’s office said he also joined a separate 23-state coalition and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro in April challenging Executive Order No. 14399, a second elections-related executive order issued by Trump. That lawsuit seeks to block provisions Torrez’s office said would restrict voter eligibility and mail voting to lists of voters pre-authorized by the federal government.

A court has not yet ruled on the coalition’s motion for summary judgment in that case.