House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Donald Trump hold a news conference on April 12, 2024, at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida. (Wilfredo Lee/AP)
July 20, 2024 Story by: Editor
In April, facing pressure from hardline conservatives, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) made a visit to Mar-a-Lago to endorse Donald Trump’s unfounded claims of widespread voter fraud.
On Wednesday, the House of Representatives passed the SAVE Act, a bill requiring documentary proof of citizenship, such as a passport or birth certificate, to register to vote. This measure, which aims to prevent noncitizens from voting in federal elections—a practice already illegal—combines two key elements of the MAGA agenda: anti-immigrant sentiment and voter fraud paranoia. Although the bill stands no chance of becoming law while Democrats control the Senate and the presidency, it serves as a stark indication of the suppressive policies Trump and his GOP allies might pursue if they regain full control of Washington in November.
Evidence indicates that registration for voting by noncitizens in US elections is extremely rare. In 2016, the Brennan Center for Justice surveyed 42 jurisdictions, home to 23 million people, including 8 of the 10 areas with the highest populations of noncitizens, and found only 30 instances of suspected noncitizen voting, equal to 0.0001 percent of total votes. A 2022 audit by Georgia’s Republican secretary of state revealed that just 1,600 noncitizens attempted to register to vote over a 25-year period, with none succeeding.
Even Johnson acknowledges the lack of evidence for the fraud he claims to combat. “We all know, intuitively, that a lot of illegals are voting in federal elections,” Johnson said at a press conference in May. “But it’s not something that is easily provable. We don’t have that number.” Source: Mother Jones
