The Federal Government Is Fighting To Keep Noncitizens On Voter Rolls

  Ben Weingarten  Visit on Twitter @bhweingarten

The lawsuit against the state of Alabama by the DOJ could have national repercussions.

Will states be allowed to remove noncitizens en masse from the voter rolls during the home stretch of the 2024 election cycle? If the Biden-Harris administration gets its way, the answer is likely no.

On Sept. 9, the Department of Justice (DOJ) issued guidance seemingly threatening legal action against governmental authorities and election integrity watchdogs who might work with them to clean voter rolls, should they endeavor to do so within 90 days of Election Day. The Biden-Harris DOJ claims such actions would violate the so-called “quiet period” provision of the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) of 1993.

Now, the DOJ has made good on that threat, filing a lawsuit against the state of Alabama that could have national repercussions. At issue is an effort initiated by Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen on Aug. 13 — some 84 days from Election Day 2024 — to inactivate and seek to remove non-Americans among a population of 3,251 individuals registered to vote in the state but who have been issued noncitizen identification numbers by the Department of Homeland Security.

The feds had stymied efforts to obtain a list of noncitizens residing in Alabama, causing Allen “to approach the issue in a different way,” according to a press release.

Groups Sue Alabama

Acknowledging that some of the 3,251 individuals might have become naturalized citizens after being issued noncitizen identification numbers, Allen indicated eligible voters would be able to update their information on a state voter registration form and vote in forthcoming elections.

Allen also instructed the state’s attorney general to probe and potentially criminally prosecute registered voters who had been issued noncitizen identification numbers.

A month later, the Alabama Coalition for Immigrant Justice and a slew of like-minded groups sued the state, alleging the list maintenance effort discriminatorily targets and burdens naturalized citizens and U.S.-born citizens wrongly swept into the state’s review, violating the U.S. Constitution and Voting Rights Act, and the NVRA’s aforementioned “quiet period” prohibitions.

On Sept. 27, the DOJ filed its own suit, also alleging Alabama’s list maintenance effort violated the NVRA’s “quiet period,” whereafter the two cases were consolidated. On Wednesday, Alabama filed a motion to dismiss the case.

Requiring Proof of Citizenship

The NVRA, also called “Motor Voter,” is at the crux of current controversies over illegal immigration and noncitizen voting. Passed in 1993, the law aimed to swell the voter rolls while guarding against fraud and ensuring the voter rolls were clean.

The congressional record shows that while the bill was being debated, Republicans were concerned that illegal aliens could end up on the rolls. One amendment to the bill offered by the late Democrat Sen. Jesse Helms and his Republican colleague, Sen. Alan Simpson, would have permitted states to ask for proof of citizenship of voter registration applicants. Congress killed the amendment in conference.

Instead, the NVRA would merely require that federal voter registration forms include a checkbox for an applicant to indicate he is a citizen under penalty of perjury.

The Supreme Court has not permitted states to require documentary proof of citizenship in federal elections — a loophole congressional Republicans have sought but failed to close through the SAVE Act that passed the House but died in the Senate earlier this year.

full story at https://thefederalist.com/2024/10/08/the-federal-government-is-fighting-to-keep-noncitizens-on-voter-rolls/