Claims of noncitizens on voter rolls leave states baffled : NPR

Key Points:

• The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) claimed to have found over 250,000 non-U.S. citizens registered to vote in four states, but state election officials and experts question the accuracy and methodology behind these numbers, citing lack of transparency and potential errors.
• DHS has not explained how it obtained sensitive voter data such as Social Security numbers, which are not publicly available, raising concerns about data sources and legality, especially since DOJ lawsuits demanding such data from states have been unsuccessful.
• State officials fear that these unverified claims could be used as justification for federal interference in vote counting during the upcoming midterm elections, possibly leading to law enforcement actions like ballot seizures, which could disrupt election processes.
• DHS characterized its findings as a preliminary review and offered to collaborate with states to verify identities, but states have demanded detailed methodology and expressed concern about potential voter disenfranchisement, especially with the 90-day quiet period before the election approaching.
• Experts and election officials view the DHS claims as politically motivated and warn of the high likelihood of false positives in identifying noncitizens on voter rolls, emphasizing that actual voting by noncitizens is extremely rare and that the administration may be using these figures to sow confusion or justify future actions.