NEW: Trump Takes Action Against Noncitizen Voting With Latest Executive Order
President Donald Trump signed an executive order requiring people to provide proof of American citizenship when they register to vote. As of this past November’s elections, just 35 states require prospective voters to submit identification in order to cast a ballot.
The order directs Attorney General Pam Bondi to enter into information-sharing agreements with state election officials to identify cases of election fraud or other election law violations. It also states that federal funding for election-related matters could be withheld from states that refuse to comply.
In addition, the order will require voters to present government-issued proof of U.S. citizenship on voter registration forms. Documentary proof of citizenship includes a U.S. passport, a REAL ID or military, state or federally-issued identification indicating American citizenship.
“There are other steps that we will be taking in the coming weeks,” Trump said just before signing the order in the Oval Office on Tuesday. “We think we’ll be able to end up getting fair elections.” The president added that it was an “honor” to sign the order.
Requiring proof of citizenship to vote has long been popular among the American electorate. A poll from 2022 found that 65 percent of Americans support requiring proof of citizenship to vote, including 48 percent of Democrats, 62 percent of swing voters, and 88 percent of Republicans.
Last year, House Republicans passed the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which aimed to crack down on noncitizen voting. While noncitizens are technically prohibited from voting in federal elections, it is nearly impossible to verify whether noncitizens are indeed voting.
If enacted, the legislation will require state election officials to ask about citizenship before providing voter registration forms. There is currently no requirement to provide proof of citizenship in order to receive federal voting forms. According to a 2024 report from the New York Post, this has led to non-citizens receiving voting forms in 49 states.
The SAVE Act would also allow state officials to accept a wide variety of documents that will make it easy for citizens to register to vote in federal elections, provide states with access to federal agency databases so they can remove noncitizens from voter rolls and confirm citizenship for individuals lacking proof of citizenship, and direct the Department of Homeland Security to determine whether to conduct removal proceedings if a noncitizen has been identified as having registered to vote in federal elections.
While Republicans are still pushing for the SAVE Act to become law, it is unlikely to gain necessary Democrat support in the U.S. Senate. As a result, President Trump is hoping to address the issue through executive action.
“Free, fair, and honest elections unmarred by fraud, errors, or suspicion are fundamental to maintaining our constitutional Republic,” the order states. ” Yet the United States has not adequately enforced Federal election requirements that, for example, prohibit States from counting ballots received after Election Day or prohibit non-citizens from registering to vote.”
The order further directs the Election Assistance Commission to change the federal voter registration form to require government-issued proof of citizenship. In addition, it seeks to bar states from counting mail-in ballots that arrive after Election Day.
