The Justice Department has warned election officials in all 50 states that they could face criminal liability if they knowingly allow non-U.S. citizens to remain on voter rolls or cast ballots, escalating President Donald Trump's push to impose stricter voting rules despite evidence that noncitizen voting in federal elections is rare.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, who leads the department's Civil Rights Division, sent letters Tuesday asking state officials to explain within five days how they plan to comply with federal law and prevent noncitizens from voting.
"Any election officer, including the chief election officer of the state, who knowingly retains noncitizens on the state's [state voter registration list] or facilitates noncitizens in receiving and casting ballots could be subject to criminal liability," Dhillon wrote in letters reviewed by CBS News.
The letters are the latest step in the Trump administration's broader campaign on voting policy. Trump has repeatedly claimed that noncitizens frequently vote in federal elections, though studies and investigations have found very few documented cases. A Brennan Center review of the 2016 election found 30 suspected cases of noncitizen voting among 23.5 million votes cast in 42 jurisdictions.
The president has urged the Senate to pass the SAVE America Act, which would require proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections, and has threatened to hold up unrelated legislation unless Congress acts. He also signed an executive order seeking to create federal lists of eligible voters and restrict mail ballots, though a federal judge blocked key provisions in June, ruling that the federal government lacks authority to create state voter databases.
The Justice Department is also litigating against several states to obtain unredacted voter rolls, saying it wants to check compliance with federal voter list maintenance laws. CBS News reported that the department has acknowledged plans to share the data with the Department of Homeland Security to screen for noncitizen voters.
Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, who received one of the letters, rejected the department's premise:
"It is insulting to insinuate that the good people at our county recorders' offices across the state are not doing their jobs correctly. Arizona election officials have always worked to ensure that only eligible citizens are registered to vote, and we will continue following Arizona law—not directions that come from political rhetoric or intimidation"
A Justice Department spokesperson said the letters sought "voluntary compliance" with federal obligations to ensure only citizens vote in federal elections.
