Trump’s Signs An Executive Order Requiring States to Change Election Laws; It Could Disenfranchise More Than 21M Voters
In his latest brazenly unconstitutional executive order, Trump is trying to radically change the rules for voter registration in every state. He is demanding that states require voters to present documentary evidence of citizenship—papers that millions of voting citizens don’t have and can’t easily get.
Last week, Trump signed an executive order in which he asserted the authority to unilaterally require states to change their election laws. The order notably requires states to demand documentary proof of citizenship from any person attempting to register or re-register to vote. His order would also require that all mailed-in ballots would have to be received (not just postmarked) by election day in order to be counted, a matter of law that currently differs state by state.
An estimated 9 percent of American citizens of voting age, or 21.3 million people, don’t have proof of citizenship readily available. That figure rises to 11 percent among American citizens of color, compared to just 8 percent of white Americans.
Further, many people no longer use the name on their birth certificate, including those who changed their name after marriage, and their documentary evidence of citizenship may fail to meet the new tests.
Federal and state law already include citizenship as a requirement for voting. Attempts by non-citizens to vote are rare and readily prosecutable. However, Trump has been obsessed with false claims of massive election fraud (including by non-citizens) since he lost the 2020 presidential election to Joe Biden. The changes contained in the Trump executive order would have no actual effect on election security, but would add unproductive hurdles to registration and voting by millions of American citizens.
Constitutionality of This Action
Constitutional law experts point out that the US Constitution assigns the power to regulate elections exclusively to the states and Congress. The president has no power to make or change election laws by executive order.
“Trump’s so-called executive order is blatantly unconstitutional and designed to disenfranchise millions of lawful, eligible voters. In America, Presidents do not control elections,” said NAACP President Derrick Johnson. “Trump is clearly pushing the boundaries of executive power, and seeing how much he can get away with. It’s time for the public and all elected officials to speak up as loudly as they can before our country is stolen from its people. If we hand the president control over how elections are run in America, we no longer live in a democracy.”
“This isn’t just another executive order—it is a test to see if we allow the president to crown himself,” Johnson added.
Voter Suppression Through the SAVE Act
The SAVE Act—the so-called “Safeguard American Voter Eligibility” Act—now under debate in Congress represents an even broader attack on Americans’ voting rights. Its title suggests the direct opposite of what the bill in fact would do, which is to put the voter registration of tens of millions of American citizens in jeopardy. In addition to the citizenship proof requirements contained in Trump’s illegal executive order, the SAVE Act also would direct state officials to purge their voter rolls without critical guardrails like requiring that voters be notified before being removed from the registered voter lists.
As the League of Women Voters points out in its critique of the SAVE Act, existing legislation (the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, NVRA) already sets voter registration rules. The difference is that the NVRA is designed to make registration to vote a more streamlined and accessible process and actually encourage American citizens to register and vote. As the LWV says, the SAVE Act is a trick, with the joke on ordinary American citizens who want to exercise their right and civic duty to participate in our democratic system.
The SAVE Act also represents a different kind of danger than Trump’s illegal executive order. Since Congress does have the constitutional authority to set voting rules, the legislation if passed would be harder to fight successfully in court. The U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote on this deceptive attack on voting rights soon. Many organizations are facilitating contacts to members of Congress in opposition to the bill. You can take action through Democracy NC.
Why Does Voting Matter for the Environment?
Everyone wants safe drinking water and clean air for their families and communities. But ultra-wealthy polluters and corporations have systematically silenced our communities for generations. We have seen that when North Carolinians are heard, they often stand up and vote for clean air, water, and energy. That is why we need a healthy democracy; a democracy that puts the rights of voters over the rights of polluters. That is why voting is so important for the environment.
We at NCLCV are fighting not only for our environment, but for our democracy. We are fighting to secure protections for North Carolinians, and we cannot do that without your help.
