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I know that many of you have asked me how to ensure our state continues to set the standard for fair and secure elections, and I have taken time to think about this issue at great lengths. 

While only U.S. citizens can legally vote in federal elections, it’s nearly impossible to enforce since the National Voter Registration Act effectively prohibits states from asking for documentary proof to verify citizenship when registering voters. This loophole, combined with the Biden administrations’ failed border policies, gives me great concern that illegal aliens may be voting in our elections.

Like I've said many times before: as a result of Biden-Harris disastrous border policies, America is facing the greatest immigration crisis the world has ever witnessed, and I worry that the likelihood and volume of noncitizen voting has never been higher.

To try to keep our elections secure, I have been working with the South Carolina State Election Commission (SEC) to send a letter to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to request assistance in making sure that individuals who have registered to vote in South Carolina are only citizens of the United States who are eligible to vote in our elections.

A federal statute that has been on the books for nearly three decades allows states to obtain information about the citizenship or immigration status of any individual for any lawful purpose.

This statute says that DHS “shall respond to an inquiry by a federal, state, or local government agency seeking to verify or ascertain the citizenship or immigration status of any individual within the jurisdiction of the agency for any purpose authorized by law, by providing the requested verification or status information.”

Ensuring the integrity of voter rolls and investigating whether to remove potentially ineligible voters is undoubtedly a “purpose authorized by law.”

Given the unprecedented amount of illegal immigration that the United States has experienced under the Biden administration, the time is NOW for responsible election officials to do everything that they can under existing law to protect the integrity of our elections. (This is also why my colleagues in the Senate must urgently pass the SAVE Act to require proof of citizenship when registering to vote in federal elections…see my July 11th post for more on that.)

The Biden Administration’s failure at our southern border should not dilute the voting power reserved solely for American citizens. I am proud of the state of South Carolina for proactively working to ensure our voter rolls are accurate and contain only eligible citizens. South Carolina is doing election security right. Other states should follow suit.

Read the South Carolina State Election Commission letter here: