Alabama’s Secretary of State, Wes Allen, is worried about President Biden’s rules that he says let illegal immigrants and non-citizens register to vote.
In an interview, Allen pointed to Executive Order 14019 from 2021.
He said this order makes many federal offices act as voter registration agencies, which he believes is a problem.
Allen’s concern started when a voter told him they got a voter registration form in the mail for a dead relative.
Allen’s team found out that many state agencies must give out voter registration forms to everyone they deal with, including illegal immigrants and non-citizens.
Allen said these people get voter registration information even if they don’t end up getting the public benefits they apply for.
He stressed that only American citizens should be allowed to vote and called for changes to the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 to make sure only citizens get voter registration forms.
The White House says the executive order is meant to protect the voting rights of all legally eligible Americans, including people of color.
They want to expand access to voting and fight misinformation.
Allen testified before the Senate Rules and Administration Committee about the challenges state election officials face in ensuring only citizens register to vote.
He said his office tried to get a list of non-citizens to check against Alabama’s voter rolls but was denied.
Instead, they were told to use the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program, which isn’t meant for checking voter registration.
Allen supports two pieces of legislation. One, the Citizen Ballot Protection Act, would let states require proof of citizenship for voter registration.
The other, the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, would make states check proof of citizenship in person and remove non-citizens from voter lists.
Allen said many people in Alabama care about election integrity and want fair and secure elections.
He criticized a new executive order from Biden that protects 500,000 illegal immigrants from deportation, calling it a way to win votes by allowing illegal immigrants to stay and get benefits.
The White House responded, saying it’s illegal for non-citizens to vote in federal elections, and that protection from deportation doesn’t give voting rights.
In Alabama, laws ensure that paper ballots are used, voting machines aren’t connected to the internet, and voters must show a photo ID. Allen praised these laws as strong measures to ensure secure elections.
While non-citizens can’t vote in federal elections, some places like California, Maryland, Vermont, and New York allow them to vote in local elections.
Recently, over 500 non-citizens registered to vote in a Washington, D.C. election. Allen emphasized that this is not allowed in Alabama.
Allen also said that the National Voter Registration Act needs to be reformed to let states remove people who have moved out of state from voter rolls more quickly.
He suggested it should take two years instead of four.