Union nurses, municipalities, and voter democracy groups successfully block Trump’s fascist Department of Homeland Security from harassing and intimidating voters in nine states

Just weeks before the November midterm elections, a federal judge in California ordered on Oct. 21 a preliminary injunction that stops the Trump administration in nine states from weaponizing the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to harass and intimidate voters by having armed agents go door to door to question their eligibility to vote. The judge also ordered the federal government to refrain from elections-related field operations based against people that it knows, suspects, or should reasonably know or suspect are U.S. citizens. The nine states are California, Connecticut, Georgia, Missouri, Nevada, New York, Pennsylvania, Washington, and Wisconsin.

California Nurses Association (CNA) and National Nurses United (NNU), the largest union and professional association of registered nurses in the country and to which CNA is affiliated, are both lead plaintiffs in the lawsuit.

CNA and NNU argued that its union nurse membership, which numbers more than 225,000 and of which there are large numbers of naturalized immigrant RNs, has been harmed by DHS actions and its "Unlawful Voter Initiative." Because nurses feel threatened and targeted by the federal government, some have changed their voting plans, such as no longer feeling safe to vote in person even though they prefer to vote in person, and limited their political activity, such as no longer participating in public protests, rallies, and events.

"So many people in the United States are suffering under Trump's corrupt and cruel policies on behalf of the billionaire class that he knows cannot hold onto power in these upcoming elections without illegally suppressing our vote through outright harassment, intimidation, and even detention," said Puneet Maharaj, executive director of NNU and CNA. "But nurses fight for our patients and for our vision of a healthy society, and that all starts with fighting for a healthy democracy. As nurses, we respect and uphold the human dignity of each person. That translates into the right of each person to have a voice and a vote in decisions that determine the conditions of their life."

CNA and NNU worked with the Voto Latino Foundation, the city and county of San Francisco and the county of Santa Clara, Protect Democracy, and the National Immigration Law Center to bring this suit.

California Nurses Association/National Nurses United is the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the nation with more than 100,000 members in more than 200 facilities throughout California and more than 225,000 RNs nationwide.