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Original Date Announced
March 25, 2025The Trump administration issued Executive Order (EO) 14248, "Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections," in order "to safeguard American elections in compliance with Federal laws." § 2 of the EO enforces "the Federal prohibition on foreign nationals voting in Federal elections."
- § 2(a) requires the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) to require proof of citizenship in its national mail voter registration form. Proof of citizenship is limited to a U.S. passport, a REAL ID Act-compliant ID, a military identification card, or "a valid Federal or State government-issued photo identification if such identification indicates that the applicant is a United States citizen or if such identification is otherwise accompanied by proof of United States citizenship."
- § 2(b) requires the State Department and DHS to grant local election officials access to federal databases for verifying citizenship status. It instructs DHS and DOGE to review state voter registration records and compare them with federal immigration databases, as required by 52 U.S.C. § 20507.
- § 2(c) states that DHS must provide the Attorney General (AG) with a list within 90 days of "complete information on all foreign nationals who have indicated on any immigration form that they have registered or voted in a Federal, State, or local election."
- § 2(d) requires federal agencies to verify citizenship before providing Federal voter registration forms to enrollees in public assistance programs.
- § 2(e) empowers the Attorney General to prioritize prosecutions under 18 U.S.C. §§ 611 and 1015(f), which prohibit and penalize voting and false statements related to voting by non-citizens.
Effective Date
March 25, 2025Current Status
NoneOriginal Trump Policy Status
Status: Final/ActualTrump Administration Action: Presidential OrdersSubject Matter: CitizenshipAgencies Affected: DHS DOS Other State & Local Entities
Documents
Trump-Era Policy Documents
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Commentary
2025.03.25 Election Law Blog: President Trump Issues Dangerous Executive Order that Could Potentially Disenfranchise Millions of Voters
Election law scholar Rick Hasen notes that even though Trump's EO orders the EAC to do certain things, "He doesn't have that power, unless the courts accept some aggressive version of the unitary executive theory." Hasen further notes that the EO's proof of citizenship requirement for the national voter registration form "would prevent only a tiny amount of noncitizen voter registration but stop millions of eligible voters, who do not have easy access to documents such as passports from registering to vote."
Go to article2025.03.26 Breaking Down the Constitutionality of Requiring Proof of U.S. Citizenship to Vote - Bloomberg
Harvard Law Professor Noah Feldman discusses the constitutionality of this EO, noting that requiring the Election Assistance Commission to make it harder to prove citizenship in order to register to vote is unlawful and pressuring states not to accept absentee or mail-in ballots is probably unlawful.
Go to article