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Kari Lake a U.S. Senate candidate from Arizona, speaks July 16, 2024, during the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. (AP)
House Republicans passed a bill in July that would require documentary proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote in federal elections.
Most Democrats voted against the bill. Federal law for decades has already banned noncitizen voting in federal elections.
Noncitizen voting is statistically rare, but some Republicans have made it a campaign issue in 2024.
Kari Lake, a U.S. Senate candidate from Arizona, joined the chorus of oft-repeated falsehoods this year about noncitizen voting during her speech at the Republican National Convention.
"Just last week, Ruben Gallego voted to let the millions of people who poured into our country illegally cast a ballot in this upcoming election," Lake said on the second night of the convention in Milwaukee. Gallego, a Democratic U.S. representative, and Lake are expected to face each other in the U.S. Senate race. The Arizona primary is July 30.
Lake’s statement is a distortion of Gallego’s position.
Lake referred to the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, which passed the House by a 221-198 vote July 10, largely with Republican support. It’s not expected to pass the Democratic-led Senate.
Gallego joined nearly all Democrats in voting against the legislation.
This bill, supported by House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., requires people to provide documentary proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote in federal elections.
By opposing the bill, Gallego is not voting to allow immigrants who crossed the border illegally to vote in the federal election in November.
When Gallego voted against the bill, he said in a statement, "Of course only U.S. citizens should vote." Gallego said the bill would create obstacles for Arizonans to vote because of the requirements to provide the documentary proof of citizenship.
In 1996, Congress banned voting by noncitizens, which includes people legally and illegally in the U.S., in federal elections.
"It is already illegal for noncitizens to register or vote in federal elections," Wendy Weiser, a lawyer at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU school of law, said in an email to PolitiFact. "The SAVE Act would not change that fact."
In June, Gallego introduced the Voting Clarity Act, which would require Customs and Border Protection officers to advise migrants seeking asylum that they are ineligible to vote in federal elections.
Voting in federal elections by noncitizens "is already a crime several times over," said Sean Morales-Doyle, director of voting rights at the Brennan Center in a June statement. Noncitizens who vote face deportation or jail time. When people register to vote, they attest under penalty of perjury that they are citizens.
The SAVE Act’s documentary proof of citizenship requirement would call for essentially a birth certificate or a passport to register.
"Our research shows that over 9% of adult American citizens don't have those documents readily available," Morales-Doyle said. "So, rather than ‘safeguard American voter eligibility,’ the bill would disenfranchise millions of American citizens. And the impact would be felt disproportionately by citizens of color."
The Bipartisan Policy Center concluded that the SAVE Act, proposed months before the presidential election, needs more time and resources to be applied well.
Some cities let certain noncitizens vote in local elections. In May, Gallego voted against allowing noncitizens to vote in Washington, D.C., local elections, a reversal of a position a year ago, the Arizona Republic and Cronkite News found.
Former President Donald Trump, some Republican lawmakers and social media influencers have spread false and misleading statements about noncitizen voting. Think tanks, academics, courts and journalists have analyzed claims about noncitizen voting for years and have found only sporadic cases that wouldn’t swing federal elections.
Lake said, "Just last week, Ruben Gallego voted to let the millions of people who poured into our country illegally cast a ballot in this upcoming election."
In July, Gallego voted against the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, which requires people to provide documentary proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote in federal elections. However, federal law already bans noncitizens from voting in federal elections.
We rate this statement False.
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Kari Lake, X post, July 10, 2024
Congress.gov, H.R.8281 - Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, House vote July 10, 2024
U.S. Rep. Ruben Gallego, Statement, July 10, 2024
Bipartisan Policy Center, Five Things to Know About the SAVE Act, July 10, 2024
Arizona Republic, Rep. Ruben Gallego sides with GOP to ban non-citizen voting in DC in change from 2023 stance, May 24, 2024
Cronkite News, Ruben Gallego faces election year pressures in vote against noncitizen voting in D.C., but it’s not unusual in local elections, June 3, 2024
Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, Press release, May 14, 2024
Cleveland Plain Dealer, Frank LaRose's office flags 137 potential cases of voter activity by non-citizens. That would be .002% of Ohio voters, May 15, 2024
AP, House passes bill requiring proof of citizenship to vote, fanning a GOP election-year talking point, July 10, 2024
America’s Voice, Experts Debunk Right-Wing False Claims about Non-Citizen Voting, Disinformation, and the SAVE, July 9, 2024
PolitiFact, Mike Johnson’s false claim about noncitizens registering to vote at DMV, ‘welfare’ offices, May 20, 2024
Email interview, Edward Foley, director, Election Law at Ohio State, July 16, 2024
Email interview, Rick Hasen, director of the Safeguarding Democracy Project at UCLA School of Law, July 16, 2024
Email interview, Wendy Weiser, vice president, Democracy at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU school of law, July 16, 2024
Email interview, Sean Morales-Doyie, director of voting rights at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU school of law, July 16, 2024
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