Nearly 2,000 alien residents were found on 2 states’ voter rolls due to DMV processing errors.
(Alexandria, VA) – January 23, 2025: The Public Interest Legal Foundation (PILF) released a research brief detailing how driver licensing agencies were blamed for alien residents becoming registered to vote in 2024 thanks to automatic voter registration systems in Oregon and South Dakota.
For years, PILF has warned that automatic voter registration (AVR) invites error. AVR forces department of motor vehicle clerks into the role of making determinations of voting eligibility. Non-English speakers are routinely confused by the paperwork at DMV, and then their names and addresses are automatically sent to the voter roll. If DMV clerks make errors logging noncitizen customer information, the same can happen. Both scenarios were disclosed shortly before Election Day 2024.
PILF invoked inspection rights under the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) to access registration, redacted driver’s license application records, and immigration documents – which inform the core of the research brief.
“Automatic Voter Registration is a flawed policy that puts aliens on voter rolls. Policymakers should reject automatic voter registration. They cause chaos on the rolls and put immigrants in legal jeopardy.” — PILF President, J. Christian Adams
For nearly a decade, PILF has harvested government records of noncitizen voter cancellation reports generated by local officials. These studies were carried out in places like Illinois, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, California, Texas, and sanctuary cities across the nation. PILF has brought and won federal trial and appellate court cases in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Texas to secure access to records relating to foreign nationals registering and voting.
Public Interest Legal Foundation (PILF) is the nation’s only public interest law firm dedicated wholly to election integrity. The Foundation exists to assist states and others to aid the cause of election integrity and fight against lawlessness in American elections. Drawing on numerous experts in the field, PILF seeks to protect the right to vote and preserve the Constitutional framework of American elections. PILF has brought lawsuits and won victories in California, Texas, Mississippi, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and across the United States.
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