More than 2,700 people flagged as potentially non-U.S. citizens are registered to vote in Texas, according to a review of the state’s voter registration list and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (USCIS) database.
Secretary of State Jane Nelson announced Oct. 20. that at least 2,724 “potential noncitizens” were registered to vote after conducting a comprehensive review of its 18.4 million voter records using the federal Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database.
The review, one of the first of its kind in Texas, identified 33 potential noncitizens who may have voted illegally in the November 2024 election. Nelson said the cases have been referred to the Office of the Attorney General for investigation, as required by Texas election law. The list of potential noncitizen voters was sent last week to county voter registrars — elections administrators, county clerks or tax assessor-collectors — tasked with maintaining local voter rolls under Chapter 16 of the Texas Election Code.
Voters identified as potential non-citizens will receive a notice from the county voter registrar. To remain a registered voter, these individuals may present proof of citizenship within 30 days. If a response is not received by the county in 30 days, the registration will be cancelled. However, voter registration can be immediately reinstated by providing proof of U.S. citizenship to an elections office or at a polling location.
“Everyone’s right to vote is sacred and must be protected,” Nelson said. “We encourage counties to conduct rigorous investigations to determine if any voter is ineligible — just as they do with any other data set we provide. The SAVE database has proven to be a critically important data set and one of many that we will continue to use in Texas to ensure that only qualified voters cast a ballot in our elections.”
A county-level breakdown shows that Harris and Dallas counties have the highest numbers of potential noncitizens: Harris with 362 and Dallas with 277.
Bexar (201), El Paso (165), Hidalgo (149), Tarrant (145), Collin (109), Travis (97), Denton (84) and Fort Bend (55) also rounded out the list. About one-third of Texas’ 254 counties reported no potential noncitizens on their voter rolls, with most others identifying single-digit numbers.
“Only eligible United States citizens may participate in our elections,” Nelson said.
Texas is also pushing for stronger voter eligibility measures nationally, joining a multi-state coalition urging the U.S. Election Assistance Commission to require documentary proof of U.S. citizenship on federal voter registration forms. Additionally, a proposed amendment to the Texas Constitution, Proposition 16 (SJR 37), will appear on the Nov. 4 ballot to explicitly state that only U.S. citizens may vote in Texas elections.
While supporters say Prop 16 would explicitly add language to the constitution stating that only U.S. citizens may vote in Texas elections, critics say the requirement already exists under the Texas Election Code, which limits voter registration to U.S. citizens, making the amendment redundant and largely symbolic.
Ahead of next month’s election, there are roughly 18.5 million registered voters, a decline of over 135,000 from the November 2024 presidential campaign, according to The Houston Chronicle.
Last year, an audit conducted by the Texas Secretary of State’s office revealed that more than 11,000 non-citizens may have been registered to vote at the time of the 2020 presidential election, though officials said votes cast by non-citizens did not affect the election’s outcome.
