DHS Plans to Verify Voter Citizenship and Monitor Ballot Security

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has endorsed a plan to assist states in verifying the citizenship of registered voters. This includes monitoring mail ballot activities for signs of voter fraud. This initiative is aligned with President Donald Trump’s focus on election integrity.

The DHS approved this plan recently, aiming to launch the initiative by the end of June. States will have the option to submit their voter registration lists to a federal immigration database, ensuring citizenship and voting eligibility verification.

State election officials will receive secure access to citizenship data from federal agencies such as the Social Security Administration and the State Department. Additionally, DHS plans to collaborate with the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to monitor mail-in and absentee ballot patterns. This will help identify potential fraud.

According to a court filing, the initiative allows collaboration with USPS to track mail-in ballots, identify irregularities, and generate investigative leads.

This move is a response to President Trump’s executive order titled “Ensuring Citizenship Verification and Integrity in Federal Elections.” This order requires DHS to create state citizenship lists, ensuring that confirmed U.S. citizens aged 18 or older have their information shared with state officials.

The USPS is restricted from delivering mail-in ballots to anyone not listed on a state-provided “Mail-In and Absentee Participation List.” All mail-in ballot envelopes must have “Official Election Mail” markings and tracking barcodes, ensuring only citizens vote.

A recent court filing permits states to submit their voter registration data to the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program. This program will compare voter records with federal immigration and citizenship data from the Social Security Administration to confirm voter eligibility.

The plan includes a secure online system enabling state election officials to verify citizenship through federal agencies like U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), SSA, and the State Department.

To ensure data security, all information will remain within each agency’s system. State officials will carry out checks using a secure portal to verify voter eligibility.