1 day ago
White House Accelerates DHS Search for Noncitizen Voters
The Department of Homeland Security is checking voter lists for people who may not be allowed to vote.
The White House has asked the department to do this work faster.
Officials are comparing voter information with immigration and other government records.
They are also buying additional personal data from a private company.
Some records are missing important details, and people with similar names can be mistakenly flagged.
Citizens born outside the United States have also reportedly been included by mistake.
The administration says the investigations help make elections trustworthy.
Critics worry that mistakes could cause serious problems for legal voters and weaken confidence in elections.
An internal September 1 email says the White House pressed DHS to speed reviews of voter rolls from at least 47 states.
DHS is combining publicly available voter-roll data with information purchased from Accurint and government databases.
Officials warned that incomplete records, similar names and foreign-born citizens have produced false positives.
DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said 1,620 potential cases were under investigation, while hundreds of officers were reassigned to the effort.
Critics say the initiative could wrongly target citizens and discourage voting, while the administration says it protects election integrity.
- Who
- The White House, the Department of Homeland Security, and other federal agencies are reviewing voter records; critics, election experts and some state officials have raised concerns.
- What
- Federal agencies are conducting an accelerated review of voter rolls to identify possible noncitizen registration or voting.
- Where
- The review involves voter rolls from at least 47 states and federal databases across the United States.
- When
- The effort was described in a September 1 email and reported on September 24, as midterm elections approached.
- Why
- The administration says it is pursuing potential illegal voting and protecting election authenticity; critics say the effort risks false accusations and voter disenfranchisement.
Administration Position
Critics' Concerns
Purpose of the review
Administration Position
The administration says investigating potential noncitizen voting is necessary to protect the authenticity of election results and pursue violations of law.
Critics' Concerns
Critics say widespread noncitizen voting has not been substantiated and that the effort may undermine confidence in elections.
Use of personal data
Administration Position
DHS is supplementing incomplete public voter rolls with commercial and government data to identify possible cases.
Critics' Concerns
Experts and former officials warn that matching incomplete records can produce false positives and expose citizens to additional scrutiny.
Effect on voters
Administration Position
The administration says potential cases should be investigated and that enforcement is being conducted lawfully and professionally.
Critics' Concerns
Critics warn that mistaken flags can affect air travel, naturalization applications and the ability of legal voters to participate without intimidation.
Key facts
- Voter rolls reviewed
- At least 47 state voter rolls were obtained by the Department of Homeland Security.
- Investigations underway
- DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said 1,620 cases were under investigation.
- Data source
- DHS used public voter-roll information supplemented with data from Accurint.
- Federal records checked
- The review matched voter information with records from ICE, USCIS, the State Department and the Social Security Administration.
- Staff reassignment
- Hundreds of USCIS fraud-detection and national-security officers were reassigned for at least three weeks beginning in August.
- Nevada example
- DHS initially identified nearly 16,000 potential noncitizens on Nevada's rolls but had verified 185 cases, according to the state secretary's office.
- False-positive concerns
- Officials said the review mistakenly included citizens with similar names and some U.S. citizens born abroad.
Quotes
Markwayne Mullin
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security
“We have 1,620 cases moving right now that are under investigation, and that list grows every single day.”
theprint.in
Kerry Doyle
Former DHS deputy general counsel
“When there is a flag in the system, it’s very difficult to fix it. It totally upends your life.”
theprint.in
Sources
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