Today, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order to protect the integrity of American elections. This Order strengthens voter citizenship verification and bans foreign nationals from interfering in U.S. elections.

The Election Assistance Commission will require documentary, government-issued proof of U.S. citizenship on its voter registration forms.

Agencies like the Department of Homeland Security [DHS], Social Security Administration and Department of State must provide states with access to Federal databases to verify eligibility and citizenship of individuals registering to vote. The Attorney General will prioritize prosecuting non-citizen voting and related crimes, including through use of DHS records and coordination with state attorneys general.

Federal election-related funds will be conditioned on states complying with the integrity measures set forth by Federal law, including the requirement that states use the national mail voter registration form that will now require proof of citizenship.

The Order improves the integrity of elections by directing the updating of the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines 2.0 and security standards for voting equipment and prioritizing federal grant funds accordingly. This includes requiring a voter-verifiable paper ballot record and not using ballots in which the counted vote is contained within a barcode or QR code. It directs the Attorney General to enter into information-sharing agreements with state election officials to identify cases of election fraud or other election law violations.

Non-compliant states may face prioritized Federal enforcement of election integrity laws and loss of funding given their unwillingness to police fraud.

The Attorney General and Secretary of Homeland Security shall prevent non-citizens from any involvement in administering elections. The Attorney General will fully enforce the voter-list maintenance requirements of the National Voter Registration Act and the Help America Vote Act.