New York, NY—Today, House Speaker Mike Johnson and Donald Trump held a joint press conference to promote legislation aimed at “elevating the issue of non-citizens voting in federal elections.” House Republicans plan to introduce a bill requiring proof of citizenship to vote in federal elections. The bill mandates states to remove noncitizens from existing voter rolls. However, in the United States, federal law already bans noncitizens from voting in federal elections, and instances of noncitizen voting are extremely rare. Across the country, states are required to conduct list maintenance to eliminate ineligible voters from registration lists. Investigations led by Democratic and Republican officials have found almost no instances of noncitizen voting.
This proposed bill represents MAGA Republicans’ continuous attempts to amplify their anti-immigrant agenda, fearmonger immigrant communities, and delegitimize the country’s democratic process in order to advance their own political interests.
Murad Awawdeh, President and CEO of NYIC Action, said:
“Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans continue to spread lies about noncitizen voting in federal elections, using scare tactics to advance their anti-immigrant agenda and secure votes. Spreading these lies undermines the integrity of our democratic process, and puts a target on immigrant communities by perpetuating a culture of fear and division. The facts demonstrate that noncitizen voting is a fabricated issue that lacks any evidence to validate its existence. The GOP’s exploitation of this falsehood further reveals their disregard for the truth and their motive to create confusion, spread misinformation, and scapegoat immigrants for their own election losses.”