The Department of Justice has sent formal letters to election officials in all states and the District of Columbia, warning that top state election leaders, including chief election officers, face criminal prosecution if they knowingly keep noncitizens on voter rolls, send them ballots, or count their votes in federal elections.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the Civil Rights Division signed the letters. They cite multiple federal statutes, including the National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, and others that require accurate voter rolls and prohibit noncitizens from voting in federal elections.
“The Department sent these letters to all 50 states and the District of Columbia, asking for voluntary compliance in a timely manner with their obligations under federal law to ensure only citizens vote in federal elections,” a Justice Department spokesperson told NBC News.
The letters make clear that “knowingly retaining noncitizens” on statewide voter lists and allowing them to receive or cast ballots constitutes aiding and abetting violations that can lead to criminal charges against election officials themselves.
One letter obtained by Civil Beat addressed to Hawaii Chief Election Officer Scott Nago stated: “State election officers, including the chief election officer of the state, could be criminally prosecuted for aiding and abetting” violations.
It added that knowingly keeping noncitizens on the rolls and counting their ballots would amount to the “procurement, casting, or tabulation” of ballots known to be false.
States that received the letters reportedly include Michigan, Arizona, Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee, Oregon, and others. Some were given just five days to explain their compliance steps.
This is not a suggestion. This is a warning shot across the bow to any election official who thinks they can look the other way while noncitizens participate in federal elections.
For months, the Trump DOJ’s Civil Rights Division under Harmeet Dhillon has been aggressively pursuing voter roll maintenance. The department has sued multiple states for failing to produce full voter registration lists and has requested data from all 50 states to identify noncitizens, deceased voters, and other ineligible registrations.
Read the letter below:
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