Trump Justice Department says it's investigating Utah's lieutenant governor

SALT LAKE CITY — The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson after she refused to turn sensitive voter information over to the federal government, according to a letter sent by the agency's Civil Rights Division.

Henderson, who has resisted efforts by President Donald Trump's department to access personal information about Utah voters, posted a screenshot of the letter on social media Wednesday. The letter states: "As you are aware, you are currently under investigation and ongoing litigation as to the extent to which you have failed to comply with your duties under the (Civil Rights Act of 1960)" as well as the National Voter Registration Act ... and Help America Vote Act of 2002."

"Um, no, I was not aware, but I guess I am now," Henderson, a Republican, responded in a social media post Wednesday. "It would be nice if the good folks at the DOJ would focus on actual problems instead of baselessly harassing election officials."

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The letter, obtained by KSL, was sent Friday. It says Henderson is obligated to retain documents and other records that might be relevant to the investigation but does not provide more details about what the agency is looking into.

"Your failure to preserve relevant data may constitute spoliation of evidence, which may subject you to civil and criminal sanctions," the letter to Henderson states.

In a statement, the Department of Justice said it "sent the letter to the states we are in active litigation against regarding their failure to provide the full (voter list) as required by federal law."

The department threatened Henderson with potential criminal prosecution in July after she rebuffed its requests to hand over Utah's voter rolls to the federal government. Federal officials have filed multiple lawsuits against states, including Utah, seeking similar information, but have been rejected by courts more than 20 times.

In response to the lawsuit against Utah, Henderson's office said "neither state nor federal law entitles the Department of Justice to collect private information on law-abiding citizens."

Utah House Minority Leader Angela Romero, D-Salt Lake City, issued a statement thanking Henderson on Wednesday, a rare, cross-party show of support at a time when many Republican leaders have stayed quiet on Trump's efforts to exert federal power over how states administer elections.

"A big thank you to the lieutenant governor for standing up for the people of Utah and defending our democratic institutions," Romero said. "Voter fraud is not an issue in Utah. Our own state audit found that '99.72% of Utah's registered voters are verifiably U.S. citizens,' underscoring that widespread voter fraud is not a significant issue in our state."

"We appreciate the lieutenant governor's commitment to protecting voter privacy," she added. "It helps ensure that people can participate in elections free from intimidation, political pressure, or fear that their personal information will be misused."

Henderson asks Supreme Court to block rule on mail-in voting

Henderson also signed on to a brief filed with the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday asking the justices to block a proposed rule by the U.S. Postal Service that would limit mail-in voting in states where officials don't turn over voter data to the agency.

She joined with the secretaries of state of Kentucky, North Dakota, South Dakota, Georgia, New Hampshire and Kansas in arguing against the rule. Several Utah county clerks — including those from Cache, Weber, Morgan, Davis, Beaver, Garfield, Millard, Tooele, Wayne, Summit, Uintah and Box Elder counties — also signed on to the brief.

The brief warns that it is too late to implement the rule ahead of the November election, and any efforts to do so would cause chaos for voters who use mail-in ballots — including in Utah, where the method is widespread and popular.

Given that the Nov. 3 election is now less than 60 days away, the officials say any changes should be implemented ahead of the 2028 general election, when election administrators have time to prepare.

The "concern is not a partisan one," the group writes. "A mail ballot that is never delivered disadvantages no party in particular; it simply denies the franchise to an eligible voter who has followed state law in every respect. And an election conducted under requirements that many offices could not satisfy invites a challenge to the margin in every close race in the country, brought by whichever side comes up short."

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