As election security is increasingly called into question, a new report from the Texas Public Policy Foundation discusses the challenges of ensuring that only American citizens vote in elections. Chuck DeVore, who authored the paper, also explains how Texas could further strengthen its laws by adopting a model similar to Arizona.
The National Voter Act, passed in 1993, inadvertently created loopholes that allowed non-American citizens to vote in national elections.
The act mandates that states use a federal voter registration form, which only requires the sworn testimony that an individual is a U.S. citizen without providing any proof, per 52 U.S.C. § 20504.
In Arizona v. Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc., the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a state government’s ability to enforce stricter standards for voter eligibility in state and local elections, but ruled that the federal form is sufficient for federal elections.
As illegal aliens continued to cross the southwestern border raising concerns about election integrity, Attorney General Ken Paxton joined 23 other states in asking the Supreme Court to allow an Arizona law requiring proof of citizenship to vote to take effect in 2024. A per curiam order from the Supreme Court allowed Arizona’s proof‑of‑citizenship requirements for certain federal elections to go into effect while litigation continues.
The order was criticized by some opponents as being burdensome, while proponents argued that the laws were necessary for preserving the integrity of elections.
Critics from left-leaning groups highlighted that voter verification laws create disenfranchisement by disallowing American citizens without the necessary documentation to vote, leading to suppressed turnout. However, DeVore argues that the federal government maintains a database that can be accessed to verify a citizen’s status without imposing undue burdens.
Data from the implementation of the Arizona law suggested that voter verification resulted in minimal disenfranchisement. Most citizens were turned away from the polls because they did not know that proof was now required, rather than being barred from voting altogether.
As of 2025, Arizona remains the only state to implement a bifurcated voter‑roll system that separates “verified” voters from “federal‑only” voters on the basis of documentary proof of citizenship, Even so, the model has influenced legislation in multiple states, including Texas.
Building on that model, DeVore proposes that states adopt a bifurcated system based on Arizona’s, but assign federal-only voters to specific polling locations designated solely for federal elections. Voters classified as “federal-only” would receive materials explaining how to upgrade to verified status and could submit proof of citizenship at any time.
The SAVE Act was introduced and passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in 2025 and would require voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship before voting in federal elections. However, it stalled in the U.S. Senate.
