CHICAGO — This week, the Republican National Committee (RNC) initiated a comprehensive inquiry into voter registration lists across the United States. This effort is part of a larger strategy aimed at questioning the integrity of electoral processes by closely examining voter rolls.
The RNC has submitted public records requests to top election officials in 48 states and the District of Columbia. The requests seek documents detailing how these jurisdictions maintain their voter registration lists and remove ineligible voters, such as deceased individuals and non-citizens. The RNC argues that transparency in this process is critical in order for the public to be aware of states’ efforts to keep voter lists accurate.
This initiative coincides with President Donald Trump’s recent executive actions aimed at reforming U.S. elections. One of his proposals includes mandating that individuals must provide proof of citizenship when registering to vote in federal elections. These moves align with persistent misconceptions about non-citizens and deceased individuals casting votes, which are infrequent and usually detected and addressed when they occur.
“Voters have a right to know that their states are appropriately managing voter rolls and promptly updating voter registration lists by eliminating ineligible voters,” RNC chairman Michael Whatley said in a statement.
The National Voter Registration Act already obliges states to actively maintain accurate and current lists of registered voters. Since the 2020 election, conservative groups have harnessed unfounded allegations of widespread voter fraud to scrutinize the work of election officials in maintaining voter lists. This has led to a surge in public records requests that burden election workers, especially as they prepare for upcoming elections.
Moving into 2024, a survey by The Elections & Voting Information Center at Portland State University found that 60% of local election officials agree that “unduly burdensome requests significantly impede my ability to perform my duties.”
There have also been attempts to challenge significant numbers of voters using flawed analyses. States have various methods to pinpoint voters who are deceased or have moved, such as reviewing death and court records, to ensure voter lists are as precise and up-to-date as possible.
Furthermore, 24 states are involved in a bipartisan, multi-state initiative to maintain accurate voter records. This coalition was bigger until two years ago when nine states under Republican leadership withdrew from the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), questioning its funding and objectives.
During the past two years, ERIC has delivered 1,040 reports to its members, identifying approximately 8.2 million potentially outdated voter records. These reports, presented at a recent meeting of chief election officials, highlighted records of voters who had passed away, relocated within or outside their state, or had duplicate registrations.