Oregon Secretary of State Tobias Read is rejecting a federal threat to prosecute state and local election officials, a warning that names county clerks like Marion County's among those who could face criminal charges ahead of the November 2026 general election.
The U.S. Department of Justice sent Read a seven-page letter on July 7, warning that election officers who "knowingly" allow noncitizens to vote could face criminal liability.
The letter, signed by Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, gave Oregon five days to explain in writing how it plans to comply with federal voting laws.
The letter stopped short of accusing Oregon of any wrongdoing.
"The U.S. DOJ is knocking on our door again with more threats and no evidence to back up their fever dreams about non-existent voter fraud," Read said in a statement released July 8. "Oregon elections are secure, accurate, and fair."
Oregon did identify a registration problem in 2024. The state DMV discovered that employees had inadvertently allowed more than 1,700 potential noncitizens to register to vote over several years through Oregon's automatic voter registration system.
Only a small fraction ever cast a ballot, and several had become U.S. citizens before voting, according to state officials. The Secretary of State's Office and DMV changed multiple policies in response.
A Legislative Fiscal Office study found 38 cases of improper voting out of 61 million ballots cast in Oregon between 2000 and 2019.
Read's office, based in Salem, oversees county election operations statewide. Marion County's elected nonpartisan county clerk handles the day-to-day work of mailing and processing ballots.
Both fall under the DOJ's broad prosecution warning, which applies to "any election officer, including the chief election officer of the state," according to Dhillon's letter.
Marion County's elections office has not issued a public statement about the DOJ letter.
The July 7 letter is the latest clash between the Trump administration and Oregon over election administration. In September 2025, the DOJ sued Read for refusing to hand over unredacted voter rolls containing Social Security numbers, driver's license numbers, and dates of birth. A federal judge dismissed that case.
The federal government is appealing.
Nationally, the administration has lost 11 district court cases and one appellate ruling in its push to obtain unredacted voter data from states. No court has ordered a state to turn over that information.
The Guardian reported that similar letters went to all 50 states and the District of Columbia on July 7. The same day, the DOJ announced it would deploy federal election monitors to 15 jurisdictions in six states during the 2026 primary season.
Oregon was not among those targeted for monitors.
What's next
Oregon's five-day response window expires around July 12. Read has not indicated whether he will respond. He ignored a similar federal data demand in 2025.
The county clerk's office can be reached at 503-588-5041. Oregon's next major election is the November 2026 general election.
