Courtesy of the Iowa Secretary of State
The media consistently claim that noncitizens didn’t cast ballots in U.S. elections because the punishment is so severe: fines, captivity, and probable deportation are much of a deterrent. Secretary of State Paul Pate stated this week that 277 noncitizens were found to be registered to vote or really voted in Iowa, but plenty of noncitizens have not been deterred from doing so.  ,
According to a statement from Pate’s office based on data from the federal Systematic Alien Verification for Entries ( SAVE ) program, the audit found 35 noncitizens cast ballots that were counted in the 2024 general election, and five noncitizens attempted to vote but their ballots were rejected. Additionally, it provided the following in-depth explanations of what the assessment discovered:
On Election Day, 18 noncitizens cast regular votes at the elections, and these votes were counted.
These absent votes were cast by 15 noncitizens who had cast absentee ballots.
On Election Day, 2 noncitizens cast temporary vote at the polls, and these seats were tallied.
Absentee and Special Voters Precinct ( ASVP ) boards rejected absentee ballots from 2 noncitizens.
On Election Day, 3 noncitizens cast temporary votes that the ASVP board rejected.
22 noncitizens registered to cast ballots in 2024, but they never did.
Another noncitizens who have registered to vote have done so in the past.
The Iowa Department of State made a list of possible noncitizens , registered to vote, before the 2024 public election, which led to a national barrier, a spokesperson for the Iowa Department of State said.
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services ( USCIS ) field office in Des Moines received the Department of State’s potentials list, and they were able to reduce the list of potential noncitizens to 2, 176. According to the spokeswoman, they later verbally informed the Department of State that about 12 % of the list was made up of noncitizens.
Next, USCIS in Washington, D.C., confirmed that 12 % ( 277 ) were noncitizens but would not permit its regional office to disclose to the state which of the 2, 176 registered voters on the potential noncitizen list were not eligible to cast ballots.
The federal government “refused to disclose who the noncitizens were,” Pate said in the assertion.” The federal government reviewed our information and verified our membership status.” Just available Iowa voters are permitted to take part in Iowa elections. We are working with the Iowa government to find solutions that can evaluate citizenship before casting vote, and we are assured that both chambers will understand the significance of this policy. Our recommendations for the next step will be vital in achieving a balance between voter participation and electoral integrity.
Pate has proposed legislation that Iowan politicians should take into account in order to get noncitizens earlier in the process. At the registration stage, citizenship verification may be required under the legislation.
Beyond making legislative changes, Pate may file a lawsuit against USCIS, asking for future voter identification information to be viewed by state officials in the state using Social Security numbers in the Protect plan next to voting registration info.
Many people are registering or voting, as Federalist Senior Contributor Ben Weingarten demonstrated in an August report, despite Democrats ‘ frequently claiming that many do so because they are not voting or that large numbers of people do not ( which is troubling ). He cited instances from Pennsylvania, Virginia, New Jersey, Ohio, North Carolina, Massachusetts, California, and Illinois.
They will continue to be abused until state and federal governments work together to end all the channels for improper election.
The Federalist’s Beth Brelje is a journalist for primaries. She is an award-winning investigative journalist with years of advertising exposure.
