Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sent a letter to the United States Senate advocating for the passage of legislation that mandates proof of citizenship for voting in federal elections. The proposed law, known as the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE Act), aims to enhance election security by ensuring that only U.S. citizens are permitted to vote.
Currently, federal law prohibits states from requiring proof of citizenship for voting, despite also barring non-citizens from participating in federal elections. Paxton emphasized the urgency of this legislative change, citing significant issues at the United States-Mexico border since President Joe Biden took office in 2021.
“The situation at the United States-Mexico border has devolved dramatically since Joe Biden assumed the presidency in 2021. Millions of aliens have been intentionally released into communities across the nation and countless other ‘gotaways’ have escaped detection altogether,” stated Paxton. “Aside from undermining the sovereignty of the States, endangering the safety of Americans, and flooding the country with human trafficking and illicit contraband, this disaster has opened the door to the abuse of our electoral system by partisan political activists who aim to mobilize illegal aliens to vote in this country’s elections.”
Paxton further criticized current federal regulations: “Although federal law prohibits those who are not U.S. citizens from voting in federal elections, it also paradoxically prohibits States from requiring voters to have proof of citizenship to vote in federal elections. Under any circumstances, this federal prohibition against citizenship verification makes little sense, but it is especially troubling given the current scale of the illegal immigration crisis,” he said.
He concluded by urging Congress to pass the SAVE Act: “I am calling on Congress to pass the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (‘SAVE Act’), which would require voters to provide proof of citizenship, thereby preventing the effective disenfranchisement of citizens.”
To read Paxton's full letter, click here.