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In late March, President Donald Trump issued an executive order on elections that included a requirement that Americans prove their citizenship in order to register to vote. While the order is currently the target of several lawsuits, and courts may intervene, it was just the latest move in a nationwide push by Republicans to require proof of citizenship for voting.
Currently, there is no federal requirement to show proof of citizenship in order to vote. Instead, voters across the country must attest to their citizenship under penalty of perjury. Voting when you’re not a citizen is illegal and comes with significant risks, including prison time and deportation. Noncitizen voting is very rare, and is unlikely to happen in significant enough numbers to affect the outcome of elections.
In recent years, New Hampshire, Wyoming, and Louisiana passed laws requiring citizenship proof when registering to vote. Several other states, including Texas and Michigan, are considering bills that would require proof of citizenship at the state level. The SAVE Act, a federal bill in Congress, also includes the requirement. Arizona has already been requiring proof of citizenship for voters for years, but the requirement has had glitches and problems. These state bills, the executive order, and the SAVE Act have different requirements as to which documents would be acceptable as proof of citizenship.
As the United States appears to be moving closer to requiring some form of citizenship proof in order to vote, we want to know what you think about this. Do you have documents proving your citizenship, or know where to get them? What would you use? How would you feel about a requirement in your state or nationally?
Please share your thoughts and questions with us by filling out the form below. (If you don’t see the form below, head to this link.)
Lauren Aguirre is Votebeat’s engagement editor, focused on connecting people to information they need about voting where they live. She is based in Philadelphia. Contact Lauren at laguirre@votebeat.org.
