Key Takeaways:
– Georgia’s recent internal audit reveals a minimal number of noncitizens on its voter rolls.
– Only 20 noncitizens were found having registered to vote, with a mere 9 who actually cast their ballots years ago.
– The identified noncitizen registrations were cancelled and cases referred to law enforcement.
– The incident reinforces the need for meticulous citizenship verification and maintenance of clean voter registries.
– The efforts are geared towards bolstering voter trust in election transparency and legitimacy.
Beginning the Breakdown
If you’ve been following the news about votes and voters, then you’ll know there has been a lot of talk about noncitizens voting unlawfully. Especially in Georgia. Well, a recent investigation looking into this issue, led by the Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger, found some pretty interesting things.
Digging into the Details
Let’s go step by step. The investigation spotted 20 people who weren’t US citizens but had somehow registered to vote. But here’s a kicker – only 9 out of these 20 people actually cast their votes. And this happened some years ago when there wasn’t a system of checking voter IDs. The remaining 11 people, though registered, didn’t vote at all.
Protecting the Ballot Box
The state took immediate action after discovering these discrepancies.Every single one of those 20 voter registrations was cancelled. And it’s not something they took lightly; any possible illegal actions were referred to those who handle the law.
Now, you’re probably wondering why noncitizens, even a tiny number, would be allowed to register in the first place. Well, the Secretary of State explained that they’re committed to ensuring only U.S. citizens can vote. They’re consistently working towards upholding the citizenship checks and keeping the voter lists squeaky clean.
Boosting Voter Confidence
Two years ago, a similar audit was carried out. No noncitizens were found to have voted in Georgia then. These audits are not just conducted to keep the voter rolls clean, but also to boost voter confidence in election results.
Remember Kelly Loeffler? The former US Senator who was a candidate in the 2020 election? Well, she believes that these findings and the transparency that followed could help increase trust in the voting system.
The Big Election Claims
If this news sounds vaguely familiar to you, it might be because of former President Donald Trump. He has claimed on several occasions that millions of undocumented immigrants voted in the 2016 and the 2020 elections. And he’s now suggesting that it might be the same story in the 2024 election. What’s important is that these claims lack solid proof.
Preventing Noncitizen Voting
There’s one more thing to note here. Congress considered passing a bill to stop noncitizens from voting. But there’s already a law that does exactly that. That’s why the nine people who voted were called out and their cases forwarded to prosecutors.
In Conclusion
So, there you have it. The recent audit in Georgia shows that the number of noncitizens voting is small, but still, it’s crucial to keep a tab on these matters. As for you, the next time you hear claims about noncitizens swaying election results, remember what you learned today and keep asking for the proof.