Indiana to check voter rolls for noncitizens with revamped federal system

Indiana will soon be scanning voter rolls for noncitizens after receiving access to a revamped federal system, Secretary of State Diego Morales announced on July 7. 

The move comes after Morales and Attorney General Todd Rokita asked U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for help in verifying the citizenship of 600,000 voters less than a month before the 2024 general election. Voting rights advocates denounced the announcement at the time, fearing it would disenfranchise eligible voters who don’t have easy access to the documents required to prove citizenship. 

The agency, operating under President Joe Biden’s administration at the time, never granted the request. 

The information now available to Indiana is called the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements, or SAVE, data system, which was overhauled with help from the Department of Government Efficiency beginning in April to eliminate fees and allow for easier mass checks. 

“As someone who knows firsthand what it means to earn U.S. citizenship, I deeply value the rights and responsibilities that come with citizenship — especially the right to vote. This agreement is another step in safeguarding the rights of every eligible Hoosier voter and reflects our commitment to protecting the integrity of our elections,” said Morales, who is a naturalized citizen from Guatemala, in a news release. 

How will I know if my eligibility is at risk? 

Voters who are flagged by the system and cannot have their citizenship verified by the Bureau of Motor Vehicles will be notified via mail and given 30 days to provide proof of citizenship, according to House Enrolled Act 1264.

Some citizens may receive such notification, as those who registered to vote before 2005 did not have to provide their Social Security number or state-issued ID. 

The 2024 law defines proof of citizenship as a birth certificate, passport, naturalization document or naturalization number. Legible photocopies are also acceptable.  

If the individual is unable to provide documentation, they can appeal to the county election board. The board’s decision will be forwarded to the county voter registration office, which will ensure records reflect the verdict.

Will SAVE data be used for criminal investigations and deportation? 

It’s unclear how the revamped data system and its partnerships with states will impact federal immigration enforcement efforts. 

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services did not respond to IndyStar’s request for comment by publication, including whether it will use the new collaboration to detain, deport or investigate undocumented immigrants.  

The lack of information has generated some concern, including from a state election official who told National Public Radio (NPR) they worried the information would be used to aid President Donald Trump’s mass deportation campaign.

When asked if the efforts would be used to facilitate immigration enforcement or criminal prosecution, a spokesperson for the Indiana Secretary of State’s office said local election officials should forward evidence of noncitizen voting to law enforcement.

What voting rights advocates are saying 

Julia Vaughn of Common Cause Indiana, an advocacy group that focuses on voting rights and government transparency, said SAVE was never intended for verifying voter eligibility; instead, it’s historically been used to determine whether someone can receive government benefits by checking their immigration status.  

Data contained within SAVE is sometimes out-of-date and inaccurate, she said, presenting a real possibility that citizens will be mistaken as noncitizens.  

She pointed to a similar program from Kansas called Crosscheck, which compares voter registration data with lists from participating states and looks for matches that prove someone is registered twice.  

But a 2017 study found 99.5% of voters with name and date of birth matches within the Crosscheck system were in fact two separate individuals, creating the risk that someone could be falsely identified as an ineligible voter. 

The system led to a class action lawsuit that alleged the program exposed sensitive personal information of voters suspected to be ineligible. One of the plaintiffs, for example, had parts of his Social Security number shared over unencrypted emails with the state of Florida because a man who lived there shared the same name as the plaintiff. 

While the Indiana process allows potentially misidentified voters to prove their citizenship, merely missing a piece of mail could cost someone to lose their opportunity to vote. Vaughn said she fears people who are cleared from the voter rolls may only find out when they go to the polls. 

The risk is not worth it to Vaughn, who called the concept of noncitizen voters a “popular misperception.” 

There is little evidence to support widespread voting by noncitizens. An audit in Georgia found a little more than 1,600 potential noncitizens attempted to register to vote from 1997 to Feb. 2022, but none were successful. 

“It’s a continuation of misguided public policy based on myths,” Vaughn said, “and really doesn’t address the very real election issues that we have here in Indiana, which is evidenced by our very low voter turnout.” 

Contact Marissa Meador at mmeador@gannett.com or find her on X at @marissa_meador.