Attorney General Paxton Urges Passage of the SAVE Act
July 15, 2024 | Austin, TX
Attorney General Ken Paxton sent a letter to the United States Senate detailing the pressing need to support legislation passed by the United States House to safeguard American elections by requiring people to provide proof of citizenship before being allowed to vote in federal elections. Current federal law prohibits states from requiring proof of citizenship, even though federal law also prohibits non-citizens from voting in federal elections.
“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,” said Attorney General 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.”
“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,” Attorney General Paxton continued. “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.”