EXCLUSIVE — Republicans in Congress are renewing a push to combat noncitizen voting in federal elections, directing their attention to the registration forms used to vote by mail.
The Citizen Ballot Protection Act, spearheaded by Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) and Rep. Gary Palmer (R-AL), would codify states’ ability to require proof of citizenship on mail voting applications. The legislation, introduced Tuesday, was offered during the previous Congress but failed to gain traction under Democratic leadership and then-President Joe Biden.
“Voting in our country is a sacred right that must solely be limited to American citizens,” Britt said in a statement. “To allow states to uphold this principle should be simple commonsense.”
The proposal would amend the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, which says voter registration forms submitted by mail may not include “any requirement for notarization or other formal authentication” and is intended to empower states to enact citizenship requirements for mailed applications. The current requirement includes attesting on the form, under penalty of perjury, that the applicant is an American citizen.
The Supreme Court in 2013 struck down an Arizona law requiring proof of citizenship when registering to vote, concluding that states could not create new requirements for federal elections under the NVRA.
The proposed bill is also in response to Washington, D.C., and cities in Maryland, Vermont, and New York that allow noncitizens to vote in local elections.
Noncitizen voting does occur in federal elections, but documented cases are extremely rare.
Recent reported cases include six green card holders who were indicted last year for alleged illegal voting in Ohio and a student from China at the University of Michigan who was charged last year with noncitizen voting. A state audit in North Carolina conducted after the 2016 elections revealed that 41 green card holders voted out of nearly 4.8 million votes cast. A similar audit in Georgia last year identified 20 alleged cases of noncitizen voting out of 8.2 million registered voters.
A broader case study after the 2016 election of 42 voting jurisdictions across a dozen states identified 30 likely instances of noncitizens voting out of 23.5 million ballots cast.
Democratic lawmakers and voting rights advocates typically oppose such legislation, arguing it amounts to voter suppression that blocks more U.S. citizens from casting ballots than it does the number of noncitizens. Republicans, meanwhile, say the bill and those like it are safeguards that instill confidence in elections.
“It should not be controversial that states have the legal right to prevent noncitizens — including illegal aliens and official representatives of foreign adversaries — from voting in state and federal elections,” Britt said.
The measure, should it be brought to the Senate floor, is unlikely to receive the Democratic support needed to clear a 60-vote filibuster, though Republicans could attempt to pass it as part of a larger piece of legislation.
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“Americans deserve to know their elections are secure,” Palmer said in a statement. “The Citizen Ballot Protection Act is a great step towards restoring faith in the ability to conduct free and fair elections and preventing illegally cast ballots from swaying the outcome.”
The bill has garnered early support from several GOP senators, including past and present members of leadership. Original co-sponsors include Britt’s fellow Senate Rules Committee members: Chairman Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), and John Boozman (R-AR).
