Republican push for proof of citizenship to vote proves a tough sell in the states
By CHRISTINA A CASSIDY and NADIA LATHAN Associated Press AUSTIN Texas AP President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans have made it a priority this year to require people to prove citizenship before they can register to vote Turning that aspiration into reality has proved demanding Trump s executive order directing a documentary proof-of-citizenship requirement for federal elections has been blocked by a judge while federal bill to accomplish it doesn t appear to have the votes to pass in the Senate At the same time state-level efforts have unveiled little success even in places where Republicans control the legislature and governor s office The the bulk current state effort to falter is in Texas where a Senate bill failed to gain full legislative approval before lawmakers adjourned on Monday The Texas bill was one of the nation s the majority sweeping proof-of-citizenship proposals because it would have applied not only to new registrants but also to the state s roughly million registered voters The bill authors failed spectacularly to explain how this bill would be implemented and how it would be able to be implemented without inconveniencing a ton of voters commented Anthony Gutierrez director of the voting rights group Common Cause Texas Voting by noncitizens is rare Voting by noncitizens is already illegal and punishable as a felony potentially leading to deportation but Trump and his allies have pressed for a proof-of-citizenship mandate by arguing it would improve masses confidence in elections Before his win last year Trump falsely claimed noncitizens might vote in large enough numbers to sway the outcome Although noncitizen voting does occur research and reviews of state cases has shown it to be rare and more often a mistake President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference with Elon Musk in the Oval Office of the White House Friday May in Washington AP Photo Evan Vucci Voting rights groups say the various proposals seeking to require proof-of-citizenship are overly burdensome and threaten to disenfranchise millions of Americans A multitude of do not have easy access to their birth certificates have not gotten a U S passport or have a name that no longer matches the one on their birth certificate such as women who changed their last name when they married Married women who changed names are a particular concern The number of states considering bills related to proof of citizenship for voting tripled from to this year disclosed Liz Avore senior framework adviser with the Voting Rights Lab an advocacy group that tracks referendum provision in the states That hasn t resulted in multiple new laws at least so far Republicans in Wyoming passed their own proof-of-citizenship act but similar measures have stalled or failed in multiple GOP-led states including Florida Missouri Texas and Utah A proposal remains operational in Ohio although Gov Mike DeWine a Republican has explained he doesn t want to sign any more bills that make it harder to vote In Texas the statute swiftly passed the state Senate after it was introduced in March but never made it to a floor vote in the House It was unclear why regulation that was such a priority for Senate Republicans every one of them co-authored the bill ended up faltering Speaker of the House Dustin Burrows presides before adjourning Sine Die on the last day of the th Texas Legislature at the Capitol in Austin Texas Monday June Jay Janner Austin American-Statesman via AP I just think people realized as flawed as this playbook has been in other states Texas didn t need to make this mistake mentioned Rep John Bucy a Democrat who serves as vice chair of the House elections committee Bucy pointed to specific concerns about married women who changed their last name This surfaced in local elections earlier this year in New Hampshire which passed a proof-of-citizenship requirement last year Similar laws have created confusion Other states that previously sought to add such a requirement have faced lawsuits and complications when trying to implement it In Arizona a state audit uncovered that problems with the way facts was handled had affected the tracking and verification of residents citizenship status It came after bureaucrats had identified particular voters who were thought to have provided proof of their citizenship but had not A proof-of-citizenship requirement was in effect for three years in Kansas before it was overturned by federal courts The state s own expert estimated that almost all of the roughly people who were prevented from registering to vote while it was in effect were U S citizens who otherwise had been eligible In Missouri decree seeking to add a proof-of-citizenship requirement cleared a Senate committee but never came to a vote in the Republican-led chamber Republican state Sen Ben Brown had promoted the act as a follow-up to a constitutional amendment stating that only U S citizens can vote which Missouri voters overwhelmingly approved last November He reported there were several factors that led to the bill not advancing this year Due to the session s limited schedule he chose to prioritize another elections bill banning foreign contributions in state ballot measure campaigns Related Articles Schwarzenegger tells environmentalists dismayed by Trump to stop whining and get to work Judge grants preliminary injunction to protect collective bargaining agreement for TSA workers Supreme Court to hear private prison company appeal in suit over immigration detainee -a-day wages Judge blocks administration from revoking protected status for small subset of Venezuelans Trump asks the Supreme Court to clear the way for federal downsizing plans Our legislative session ending mid-May means a lot of things die at the finish line because you solely run out of time Brown reported noting he also took time to research concerns raised by local vote executives and plans to reintroduce the proof-of-citizenship bill next year Complications prompt states to focus on other issues The Republican-controlled Legislature in Utah also prioritized other polling changes adding voter ID requirements and requiring people to opt in to receive their ballots in the mail Before Gov Spencer Cox signed the bill into law Utah was the only Republican-controlled state that allowed all elections to be conducted by mail without a need to opt in Under the Florida bill that has failed to advance voter registration applications wouldn t be considered valid until state administrators had verified citizenship either by confirming a previous voting history checking the applicant s status in state and federal databases or verifying documents they provided The bill would have required voters to prove their citizenship even when updating their registration to change their address or party affiliation Its sponsor Republican state Rep Jenna Persons-Mulicka commented it was meant to follow through on Trump s executive order This bill fully answers the president s call she declared Cassidy informed from Atlanta Associated Press writers Mead Gruver in Cheyenne Wyoming David A Lieb in Jefferson City Missouri Kate Payne in Tallahassee Florida Hannah Schoenbaum in Salt Lake City Julie Carr Smyth in Columbus Ohio and Isabella Volmert in Lansing Michigan contributed to this summary
