The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for Jan. 6, 2026
Comparing its registered voter list to the federal SAVE database, the State of Texas announced in October it found over 2,700 purported noncitizens on its voter rolls. An oversight by state officials may have accidentally inflated that number.
Last Oct. 20th, the Texas Secretary of State’s office announced it had compared the state’s list of 18 million registered voters against the recently-overhauled federal SAVE database, trumpeting that it had found 2,724 potential noncitizens on its rolls.
Reporting by Votebeat Texas and the Texas Tribune, though, suggests hundreds flagged for investigation may already have provided citizenship documents to the state DMV. Texas has automatic voter registration available during transactions at its Department of Public Safety, and “motor-voter” registrants must show citizenship documents at that time. Apparently, the DPS citizenship records were never checked before the list was sent to county election officials for investigation.
County officials are now requesting documents be provided locally by the individual, but must remove nonrespondents within 30 days. Studies show that language barriers and clerical errors can also lead to mistaken motor-voter registrations. We’ll have more on that in an upcoming report.
Actual voting by noncitizens remains almost nonexistent. In June, the State of Texas referred only 33 cases for criminal investigation from the 2024 election’s 11.3 million votes cast. We’ve linked the local reporting at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl.
Today’s Links
Articles & Resources:
Brennan Center for Justice – Homeland Security’s “SAVE” Program Exacerbates Risks to Voters
American Democracy Minute – Class Action Suit by Voters Claims Personal Data Shared to the Trump Administration’s SAVE Database Violates the Privacy Act of 1974
Texas Secretary of State’s Office – Texas Completes Citizenship Verifications in the SAVE Database
Texas Tribune – Texas counties are looking into “potential noncitizens” on voter rolls. Here’s what they’re finding.
Votebeat Texas – (2025) Hundreds of Texas voters flagged as potential noncitizens may have already proven their citizenship
Texas Tribune – (2025)Texas secretary of state refers 33 potential noncitizen voters for criminal investigation
NPR – (2019) Some Noncitizens Do Wind Up Registered To Vote, But Usually Not On Purpose
Groups Taking Action:
League of Women Voters TX
Register or Check Your Voter Registration:
U.S. Election Assistance Commission – How to Register And Vote in Your State
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