Federal Agencies Charge 160 People After Reviewing 300,000 Voter Records
DHS officials say 300,000 potential noncitizens appear on voter rolls, but criminal charges remain limited to a small fraction of that total.
By Bianca Herrera ·
The Department of Homeland Security has opened 1,620 investigations into potential noncitizen voting after reviewing more than 100 million voter records.
As of mid-September, those investigations have resulted in approximately 160 arrests, which include both criminal charges and administrative immigration proceedings. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin stated in July that his agency found 250,000 noncitizens on voter rolls in California, Pennsylvania, Nevada, and New Jersey. Subsequent letters to those states presented lower figures, and DHS now cites 300,000 potential noncitizens across all states. Over 800 federal employees are currently engaged in this data review process.
The administration relies on the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements, or SAVE, system to identify discrepancies. This tool compares voter registration data with federal immigration records. The government expanded SAVE this year to allow states to upload entire voter lists at once rather than checking individuals one by one. Election officials note that initial SAVE matches often shrink after local verification. In Texas, a review suggested 2,724 potential noncitizens last year, a number that dropped by more than 500 after passport data was added. Collin County confirmed 73 of 109 flagged individuals were citizens using state records.
Wren Orey, managing director of the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Elections Project, said evidence for mass noncitizen voting is lacking. "Not only do we have no evidence that noncitizen voting is happening at scale," Orey said, "But when there are cases that appear to be noncitizen voting or registration, when you dig into the numbers, very often, they fall apart." Ryan Germany, a former investigator for the Georgia Secretary of State, added that the difference between initial data matches and confirmed noncitizens is large. He noted that many individuals on voter rolls were registered due to state software errors or incomplete naturalization processes rather than intentional fraud.
The Justice Department has focused its prosecutorial efforts in California. Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter announced two dozen criminal cases in the state last week. McCotter said the number of cases is likely to grow as reviews continue. "Imagine … 20,000 citizens, enough to fill a small stadium," McCotter said. "You go and talk to every one of them and say, ‘Well, congrats on voting. But your vote got canceled out by someone who’s not allowed under federal law to vote.’" Many of the accused are legal permanent residents who have lived in the United States for decades. Some are charged with making false statements during naturalization rather than voting while noncitizens.
California Secretary of State Shirley Weber’s office received roughly 300 grand jury subpoenas since August. Prosecutors in Los Angeles argued that the standard for charging every noncitizen voter is not the primary goal, but rather deterrence. A Justice Department spokesperson stated, "Close elections are not rare, and every illegal ballot cancels out the vote of an American citizen." In Maricopa, Arizona, County Recorder Justin Heap reviewed 60,000 records affected by a DMV software glitch. He identified 137 potential noncitizens through SAVE, with 60 having voted recently. County Attorney Rachel Mitchell later confirmed that 52 of those 60 voters were actually citizens.
The Texas Attorney General’s office has not responded to inquiries regarding its 117 criminal referrals from the state elections office. The Justice Department has brought nine cases in Texas alleging noncitizen voting. The federal review process continues as agencies work through the remaining data matches from the expanded SAVE program.
