It’s not happening. It’s all a smoke scree thrown up by our cowardly governor and useless attorney general.
Here’s what’s going on in Virginia with “non-citizen” voting – it involves DMV, Dept of Elections, human error, bullshit artists, and a governor and attorney general who have no problem with pursuing a lie.
Anything an individual does at DMV requires completing a DMV form. One of the first questions on the form is “Are you and US citizen?”, YES or NO. There is another question on the form “Do you want to register to vote?” YES or NO. If a person checks YES, I want to register to vote, the form is sent electronically to the Dept of Elections (ELECT) for processing.
Each of the 133 General Registrars in Virginia has an electronic inbox called the “hopper.” All day long, tasks, reminders, and messages from ELECT pop up in individual Registrar’s hoppers and the Registrar must take action.
For example, if someone goes online to ELECT and changes their address, that notice is routed to the Registrar where that person is registered to vote and the Registrar must update the voter’s registration record.
When a person states on their DMV form that they want to register to vote, the form goes – electronically – to ELECT who forwards the form to the appropriate Registrar’s hopper for action.
If the individual has checked NO I’m not a citizen, a notice pops up in the registrar’s hopper, in red letters, that reads NON-CITIZEN. The Registrar then checks the DMV form to ensure the NO box is checked. The Registrar then sends a letter to the individual telling them (1) you checked NO you are not a citizen, (2) non-citizens cannot vote, and (3) you have 14 days to present proof you are a citizen, otherwise you will not be registered to vote. If they individual responds with proof of citizenship, they are registered to vote; if not, they are not registered.
There are a couple of problem areas. First, the DMV form is never corrected – it sits there forever in the DMV and ELECT databases with a check in the NO for citizenship box.
The second problem is that DMV and ELECT records are available to the public for a charge.
Self-appointed “election protection experts” are popping up like weeds after a spring rain. This is what they do.
First, they contact DMV and request copies of all DMV forms where NO, not a citizen, was checked. Their request can cover any time frame – last six month, last ten years, etc. DMV replies with the cost, the requester pays the fee, DMV sends them the requested forms in an electronic file.
Next, they contact ELECT and request a list of all registered voters, with their voting records (which elections they voted in) for a time frame. ELECT replies with the cost, the requester pays the fee, and ELECT sends them the requested information in an electronic file.
Then, our self-appointed “election protection expert” compares the names of people who checked NO, not a citizen, to the names of registered voters and, sure enough, there are registered voters who told DMV they were not a citizen. These “election protection experts” then leap on this fact and claim that over 6,000 non-citizens are voting in Virginia.
In my county, there are eight of these people. Every one of them was notified by the Registrar that they had fourteen days to provide proof of citizenship. Every one of them did so and they all commented that they had simply made a mistake on the DMV form. Yet, the “election protection experts” are now claiming that eight people in our county are non-citizens who are voting. Not true. The problem is the public does not see the intervening step between someone checking NO on the DMV form, being required to provide proof of citizenship, providing that proof, and being registered to vote. People make mistakes on forms.
I don’t know what Governor Youngkin and Atty Gen Miyares are doing, however, I suspect they are listening to some of these self-proclaimed experts and not to the Dept of Elections. Why would they do that? At least two reasons: (1) Youngkin is currying favor with Trump, hoping for a job in a possible Trump administration while (2) Miyares is seeking to pump up his MAGA credentials for his gubernatorial campaign in 2025. Youngkin and Miyares both know better, they both have met with the Commissioner of Elections who has explained this to them. Yet, they continue their farce, hoping to gain from it like the weaklings they are.
Meanwhile, the General Assembly requires the State Dept of Elections to file an annual report of voter list maintenance actions. These reports are available to the public at this link.