President Trump has signed an Executive Order to strengthen election integrity by ordering citizenship verification for Federal elections and modernizing and securing mail-in and absentee ballot procedures through the United States Postal Service (USPS).
- The Order directs the Secretary of Homeland Security, in coordination with the Social Security Administration, to compile and transmit to each State a State Citizenship List of confirmed U.S. citizens who will be 18 or older at the time of the next upcoming Federal election and reside in that State.
- The lists will be updated and transmitted no fewer than 60 days before each regularly scheduled Federal election and individuals and States will be allowed to access, update, or correct records.
- The Order directs the Postmaster General to initiate rulemaking to require all mail-in and absentee ballots transmitted by USPS to be placed in secure ballot envelopes marked as Official Election Mail with unique Intelligent Mail barcodes that facilitate tracking.
- The Order requires the USPS to transmit ballots only to individuals enrolled on a State-specific Mail-in and Absentee Participation List, ensuring that only eligible absentee or mail-in voters receive absentee or mail-in ballots.
- The Order directs the Attorney General to:
- (1) prioritize the investigation and prosecution, under applicable Federal statutes, of election officials, individuals, and other entities that violate the law by issuing or distributing Federal ballots to ineligible voters; and
- (2) in coordination with other relevant agencies, withhold Federal funds from noncompliant States and localities, as appropriate.
President Trump is taking action to prevent non-citizens from voting in Federal elections and to protect the security of mail-in and absentee ballots.
- The right to vote in Federal elections is reserved exclusively for United States citizens under the Constitution and Federal law.
- Federal statutes explicitly prohibit non-citizens from registering to vote or casting ballots in Federal elections, yet lax verification and self-certification loopholes in some States have left gaps that undermine public confidence in election outcomes.
- The Federal government has a duty to prevent violations of Federal criminal law in Federal elections and to maintain public confidence in election outcomes.
- The Federal government has existing tools – including the Social Security Administration’s records and the Department of Homeland Security’s Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program – that can assist in verifying voter identity and eligibility in Federal elections.
The original announcement can be found here.
