In an effort to tighten voter registration processes, the Trump administration has conducted checks on millions of voter registrations using government databases. Despite legal challenges from Democratic officials, this move aims to verify voter eligibility, yet critics fear it may lead to valid voters being purged before elections.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has run at least 67 million registrations, mostly from Republican-controlled states, through an enhanced verification program. Tens of thousands have been flagged as potential noncitizens or deceased. Some states require eligibility proof within a month, while others suspend the registration immediately.
This national-level scrutiny of voter rolls is part of a broader initiative by President Donald Trump to federalize some election functions, promoting the narrative of widespread noncitizen voting, though such instances are rare. Concerns exist over potential errors in the DHS system, which might wrongly disqualify voters who are eligible.
“If a voter is wrongly removed, they may miss their opportunity to vote,” said Freda Levenson, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio.
Anthony Nel, a 29-year-old citizen originally from South Africa, experienced such issues. His registration was flagged in Texas, leading to a temporary cancellation while he awaited a passport update.
Trump’s agenda includes the creation of a federal list of verified voters, urging states to provide unredacted voter information for mass checks using the DHS’s Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program. While the Justice Department claims this ensures compliance with federal law, states already employ measures to maintain voter roll accuracy.
Since its expansion in April 2025, SAVE checks identified about 24,000 potential noncitizens out of 60 million registrations. Additionally, it flagged 350,000 potentially deceased individuals. Despite concerns, these findings represent only a tiny fraction of registered voters.
Republican officials view the SAVE program as a valuable tool for verifying voter information, albeit with acknowledgment that it is not foolproof. In Kansas, flagged registrations are investigated further, and pending cases allow individuals to vote, although their ballots undergo additional review.
In states like Texas, individuals have 30 days to resolve flagged registrations, while in North Carolina, hearings are required before registrations can be canceled. Ohio implements monthly checks, where alleged noncitizens need only provide proof of citizenship to restore their status.
Legal challenges continue, with voting rights advocates filing lawsuits against the program. Nel participated in one such lawsuit, contesting the verification process as flawed and alleging it might disenfranchise eligible voters.
While the SAVE system is not designed to be infallible, defenders argue that it serves as a preliminary step in verifying voter eligibility, requiring further investigation on flagged cases.