(The Center Square) – An Illinois legislator wants to know why the state of Illinois is sending voter registration forms to noncitizens.
State Sen. Steve McClure, R-Springfield, said he was notified by an immigrant rights advocate that when noncitizens apply for state aid, the Illinois Department of Human Services is sending packets to them that include voter registration forms already addressed to local county clerks’ offices.
“This is essentially entrapment,” said McClure. “You’ve got all the forms and then you send it back, because if you don’t fill this out you are not going to get your benefits. That’s a real problem.”
McClure said making the situation worse, recent legislation signed into law by Gov. J.B. Pritzker created a new system of drivers’ licenses, where noncitizens, even those who are here illegally, are given the same standard licenses as citizens. Previously, the licenses were marked if they were issued to noncitizens.
“If we receive these applications, and the person has a driver’s license number, and checks the box that says they are a citizen, whether intentionally or not, we have no way to verify that they are indeed a citizen of the United States,” said Sangamon County Clerk Don Gray. “This opens the process up to serious potential for fraud.”
Illinois mistakenly registered more than 500 non-citizens to vote when it rolled out a new automatic voter registration in 2018. The Illinois Secretary of State’s office at the time called it a computer error.
McClure said he is filing legislation that will require the Illinois Secretary of State’s office to create a database for all noncitizens that have Illinois drivers’ licenses, so that county clerks can verify that voting applicants are indeed citizens who are legally authorized to vote.
“Free, fair and honest elections are essential for our government to properly function,” said McClure. “We have to make sure that people, who are not legally allowed to vote, are not casting ballots.”
