As the federal election travels into our recent past, we should reflect upon the relentless allegations of noncitizens voting to influence election results. Although some jurisdictions allow noncitizens to vote in local elections, since 1924, it is illegal for noncitizens to vote in state or federal elections under 18 U.S.C. §611. Research has found that unlawful voting is extremely rare; however, it happens occasionally, often by mistake, and can lead to dire consequences for noncitizens including imprisonment, deportation and denaturalization.
Every federal election is plagued with allegations of illegal voting. However, the occurrence is extremely rare. In fact, the Heritage Foundation database of election fraud cases identified only 23 instances of noncitizen voting between 2003 and 2022.
A 2022 voter roll citizen audit conducted by Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger found “1,634 noncitizens who were identified as having attempted to register to vote” between 1997 and 2022. It was concluded that none of the noncitizens were able to register. They were placed on a pending status until they could provide proof of citizenship.
Federal and state prohibitions, in addition to measures that would mandate additional ID requirements for all voters or verification of eligibility, are successful with thwarting unlawful voting. States also conduct regular audits of their databases to remove ineligible voters including those who register to vote by mistake and never intend to cast ballots. Further, studies from both nonpartisan and conservative organizations have found that voter fraud by noncitizens is atypical. Even with a miniscule amount of illegal votes, the numbers are not significant enough to influence the outcome of any election.
The “great replacement” conspiracy theory that nonwhite immigrants are being ushered into the United States to replace white voters, for political gain, is an absurdity that has plagued our elections for decades.
In order to vote, a noncitizen must first receive a lawful permanent resident card (green card). Then, that immigrant must retain that status for a period of five years (three if married to a U.S. citizen) and be eligible for naturalization. Being eligible for naturalization includes being a person of good moral character as well as passing the civics and English language tests. If successful, the immigrant will attend an Oath Ceremony where a naturalization certificate is issued. Then, and only then, will the newly designated citizen be able to register to vote. In the case of migrants entering the United States unlawfully, they may or may not have a path to U.S. citizenship at all. However, if they do have a path, it will be a complicated one of 10 years or more.
Lawful permanent residents or green card holders occasionally find themselves in violation of U.S. voting laws and leave many of us wondering, “why would they register vote and/or vote knowing it is illegal?” In the majority of cases, it is by mistake. Supervisors of Elections offices have been known to send out letters advising noncitizens of opportunities to vote.
In other cases, individuals are unaware that they are not U.S. citizens. Many were brought legally or illegally into the United States as small children. It is not until they attempt to become gainfully employed or enroll in college that they realize the awful truth.
Some of these individuals may have already applied for a driver’s license or registered to vote upon their 18th birthday. Because applicants are automatically registered to vote when they apply for or renew a driver’s license, they erroneously affirm under penalty of perjury that they are citizens when clicking through the boxes on the application. I recently had a client placed in deportation/removal proceedings because she mistakenly checked this box. Fortunately, we were successful with submitting a heavily documented Request for Prosecutorial Discretion detailing how my client was led to believe she was a U.S. citizen although she was only a lawful permanent resident, and the Department of Homeland Security agreed to terminate removal proceedings against my client. Yet, not everyone is afforded a second chance.
President-elect Donald Trump has promised that mass deportations and denaturalizations are on the horizon. Although that will require an abundance of resources to carry out, we must expect that countless individuals will be affected. If one has ever voted unlawfully or made a false claim to U.S. citizenship, whether inadvertently or not, that individual can be removed from the United States. Additionally, if an immigrant is found to have obtained citizenship through fraudulent means, he or she can be stripped of said citizenship through a process known as denaturalization.
In sum, there is a lack of evidence that noncitizen voting is occurring in droves. Further, registering to vote and noncitizen voting can have dire consequences including five years of federal imprisonment, becoming ineligible for a green card and becoming removable from the United States. As a rule of thumb, do not vote unless you have a U.S. Naturalization Certificate, U.S. Passport or U.S. Birth Certificate.
