(The Center Square) – After the Oregon DMV wrongfully registered noncitizens through their program that automatically registered anyone who obtained a driver’s license or state ID, an Illinois state lawmaker introduces legislation that would criminalize knowingly registering noncitizens to vote on their behalf in Illinois.
Recently filed HB 5875 will penalize individuals who knowingly register noncitizens to vote in federal and municipal elections.
State Rep. Dan Caulkins said he’s concerned with non-government organizations, assisting non citizens residing in migrant shelters and are knowingly registering noncitizens to vote despite federal law prohibiting noncitizens from registering and voting in federal elections.
“Knowingly registering someone else to vote shall be guilty of a class four felony,” said Caulkins, the sponsor of the bill.
The Center Square sought comment from Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights and The Immigration Project regarding Caulkins’ concerns, but did not immediately receive a response.
Caulkins explained in Oregon 306 noncitizens were registered to vote. The Oregon DMV admitted to wrongfully registering at least 306 noncitizens to vote in U.S. elections.
“Obviously somebody falsified for them [the non citizens] when they registered to vote and that’s why either the person who registered or someone else who registered for them [needs to be penalized],” said Caulkins.
The Association of Mature American Citizens is a United States-based conservative advocacy organization that is supporting National Only Citizens Vote Week, happening from September 16-20. The week, they say, is to help raise awareness about election integrity.
Caulkins explained there’s currently no penalty for those who knowingly register noncitizens through, for example, a voter registration drive.
“[For example] someone asks a noncitizen at a shelter to sign up and sign a petition and they speak Spanish and you as the noncitizen didn’t know you were registering to vote. Maybe you can’t punish that noncitizen, but you need to go back to the person that signed them up and punish them for knowingly registering a non-citizen to vote,” said Caulkins.
Caulkins said he will be amending the bill to strike out language that says, “knowingly votes in an election,” which is already covered in the federal law.
“If people are being registered to vote and are not citizens and they end up voting or someone nefariously gets their ballot and votes for the non-citizen, it cancels out [Americans’] votes,” said Caulkins.
The conservative group called Only Citizens Vote Coalition, of which the Association of Mature American Citizens is a member, launched the National Only Citizens Vote Week. It has released toolkits for state leaders and congressional leaders, which encourage changes to election law to prevent noncitizens from accessing the ballot box.
