When I vote, I want to know two things: first, that my vote was counted, and second, that no fraudulent vote cancels out the impact of my vote. For both of these things to be true, safeguards must be in place to protect every step of the process. This is what securing American elections is all about. It’s simple: Protect legal votes, protect legal voters.
On March 31, President Trump signed an Executive Order (EO) titled “Ensuring Citizenship Verification and Voter Eligibility in Federal Elections.” This EO contains multiple provisions that protect voters, helping ensure that when you and I cast our ballots, they count as cast, and they’re not cancelled out.
So what exactly does this EO do, and how does it protect votes and voters?
First, the EO establishes a federal citizenship list. Basically, it uses the Department of Homeland Security’s existing data, cross-referenced with the Social Security Administration (which issues your Social Security number), to generate this list. Then, the EO stipulates that this list should be provided to the states so that they can use it to check their voter lists and flag any potential non-citizens.
This is a great idea because currently, states have to ask the federal government for this information in order to clean up voter rolls, rather than the federal government proactively providing it. It just makes things more efficient. Accurate state voter lists are important because they are the foundation for who gets to cast a ballot.
Only American citizens should vote in American elections. I can’t go to Germany or Australia and cast a ballot in their elections; neither should anyone who isn’t an American have a say in American elections. Every legal vote should count, and no legal vote should be negated by a non-citizen vote.
Second, the EO tasks the United States Postal Service with improving its processes for mail-in ballots (tightening security around ballot envelopes and mailed ballots) and ensuring that mailed ballots are sent only to eligible voters. USPS loses mail all the time, to the tune of thousands of mail pieces per month; the standard has to be higher for ballots.
During election season, there are always stories about failures in the chain of custody around mail-in ballots; basically, the process of when a voter submits the ballot to when the election official receives the ballot is full of vulnerabilities. Voting is such an important right. It’s way too important just to allow a lackadaisical approach to ballot security.
Third, this EO empowers the Attorney General to investigate and prosecute election officials, individuals, and entities that distribute ballots to ineligible voters. This just proves how seriously this administration takes the right to vote. Laws with no teeth, no enforceability, don’t really mean much. This section of the EO emphasizes zero tolerance for fraud, attempts to hijack elections, or other election interference.
The bottom line is that voting is too important to treat the laws and regulations surrounding it flippantly. It’s worth protecting, like we protect the valuables in our homes. You don’t put your engagement ring or other expensive jewelry on your front step unguarded. You keep it close to you or in a secure location—you safeguard it. American voters deserve to know that their elections are being safeguarded because of the value associated with it. This administration is working towards exactly that.