The U.S. Department of Justice has sent letters to election officials in several states warning that they could face criminal prosecution if they knowingly leave noncitizens on their voter rolls or allow noncitizens to receive, cast, or have ballots counted in federal elections. | The letters are the latest example of the Trump administration exercising unusual scrutiny over the way states run elections. At the same time, they are unlikely to have an immediate practical effect, as every state already has rules and procedures to prevent noncitizen voting. | A July 7 letter to Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, obtained by Votebeat, says federal law requires state and local election officials to maintain election records and take steps to ensure that only eligible U.S. citizens vote in federal elections. Signed by Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon, the letter gives Michigan five days to explain how it will ensure compliance with federal law at both the state and local levels. | “State election officers, including the chief election officer of the state, could be criminally prosecuted for aiding and abetting” violations of federal laws barring noncitizens from voting, the letter says. It adds that “knowingly retaining noncitizens” on Michigan’s statewide voter-registration list, sending them ballots, and counting those ballots would constitute the “procurement, casting, or tabulation” of ballots known to be false. | Read the story. |
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