How Non-Citizens can Vote in our Elections

9-20-22

Only citizens of the United States are eligible to vote in federal elections. Some are excluded for criminal records or mental incapacity (https://www.usa.gov/who-can-vote).  So being a citizen is pretty important and should have safeguards to assure only citizens are voting, especially in light of the flood of illegal aliens that have entered our country over the past decades. So how do you prove you’re a citizen and more importantly, are people being made to prove it before voting?

There are four means to prove you are a citizen; a US passport, a birth certificate, a certificate of citizenship and a naturalized citizen certificate ( https://www.usimmigration.org/articles/how-to-prove-your-us-citizenship). The US passport requires proof of citizenship in the form of the 4 items above, a prior passport, or alternative birthing documents (https://passportinfo.com/us-passport-help-guide/proof-of-citizenship/). How is proof of citizenship used in voter registration?

Each state has its own protocols for registering voters. (Efforts to federalize elections were thwarted earlier but have not gone away.) In Massachusetts for example, you need a valid driver’s license, learner’s permit or State ID and a signature on file with the Registry of Motor Vehicles. No proof of citizenship is required at time of registration. Rather, the voter registration process depends on the driver’s license/permitting process. To get a driver’s license/permit in Massachusetts, you need “…proof of citizenship or lawful presence or a Social Security Card…” (https://www.mass.gov/guides/massachusetts-identification-id-requirements). Non-citizens can get a Social Security card (https://faq.ssa.gov/en-us/Topic/article/KA-02178) and there ae a number of means to “prove” lawful presence. The result is a driver’s license in Massachusetts does not mean you are a citizen.

Massachusetts is not an outlier as many states use divers’ licenses as the single form of identification for registering voters and ultimately, voting. (NOTE: MA does not require identification to vote. It “may” ask for it. (https://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele/eleidreq/idrequirementsidx.htm) Many Democrat run states issue licenses along the lines of Massachusetts where no proof of citizenship is required and hence, proof of citizenship at the time of voting is nil, if they even ask for identification.

Even with the uproar over having to show photographic identification at the time of voting, insisting on such identification is not sufficient to thwart an effort to have non-citizens voting in our elections. The use of on-line registration is being further expanded by this Administration. (See Demos.org) Persons can be registered with no proof of even existence when you consider how many ways a person can create themselves out of affidavits/bogus birth certificates and other unconfirmable means.

Our elections are the last hope of keeping our country and every effort is required to make sure they are not corrupted. Confirming eligibility to vote is paramount and not just at the time of voting but at the time of registration. The battle has moved up the line and those of us who love this country must take the fight there.