RIGHT SPEAK: Thousands Of Noncitizens On Voter Rolls In One County Underscore Need For SAVE Act: Our Voter Registration System Relies Almost Entirely On a Backward Approach, Leaving It Poorly Equipped to Ensure Only Citizens Register

Thousands Of Noncitizens On Voter Rolls In One County Underscore Need For SAVE Act:

Our voter registration system relies almost entirely on a backward approach, leaving it poorly equipped to ensure only citizens register.

In Fairfax County, Virginia, election officials quietly remove noncitizens from the voter rolls almost every month. In the past four years alone, the county has canceled 1,912 voter registrations belonging to individuals who identified themselves as noncitizens. None were discovered through a verification system; they surfaced only when the registrants voluntarily disclosed their status. This vulnerability exists by design, not by accident.
American election law does not permit verification of citizenship at the time of voter registration. Under the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, states must accept and use the federal mail-in voter registration form created by the Election Assistance Commission. That form includes a checkbox for affirming citizenship and requires a signature under penalty of perjury, but it does not allow states to request documentation verifying citizenship. Virginia, like every other state, must operate within this framework.

The system therefore relies on enforcement after the fact rather than verification before registration occurs. Prosecutions for voter registration fraud are virtually nonexistent because such cases are resource-intensive and difficult to pursue. In September 2024, the Fairfax Office of Elections adopted a policy of referring canceled noncitizen registrants to the Virginia attorney general and Fairfax commonwealth’s attorney for investigation. The policy was recently rescinded on the grounds that it imposed a significant administrative burden, yet no prosecutions have occurred. Without a credible threat of prosecution, there is no deterrence.

In any system where accuracy matters, such as in banking or aviation, eligibility is verified at the front end. Prosecution after the fact is no substitute. It may deter some violations, but it cannot undo them or catch more than a fraction. Yet America’s voter registration system relies almost entirely on this backward approach, leaving it poorly equipped to ensure that only citizens register.

The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, known as the SAVE Act, would close this gap by requiring documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote. It would add the front-end safeguard that the current system lacks.

Why the System Catches So Few

Officials typically discover a noncitizen registration only when the individual identifies himself as a noncitizen during an unrelated government interaction. For example, a noncitizen registers to vote at a Virginia DMV, checking the “U.S. citizen” box. Months later, he receives a jury summons because voter rolls are used to identify potential jurors, and on the court questionnaire, he marks “noncitizen” to avoid serving. This triggers a notice to election officials, who then send him a letter asking him to affirm his citizenship.

If he admits he is not a citizen or fails to respond, his registration is canceled. But if he affirms citizenship again, with no proof required, he remains on the rolls. Either way, prosecution for perjury is extremely unlikely. And if he never receives a jury summons in the first place, the system may never discover the noncitizen registration at all. The system depends on accidental discovery and voluntary admission rather than systematic verification.

The Numbers Likely Understate the Problem

The Fairfax County data illustrate how often this occurs. In 2025, the county canceled 538 noncitizen voter registrations, more than one per day, and the totals for 2022 through 2024 amounted to 1,374, yielding a four-year total of 1,912. --->READ MORE HERE