US Elections 2026: New Hurdles to Having Votes Counted

With midterm elections only days away, US states are using a flawed citizenship-check tool that is creating new barriers for voters, Human Rights Watch said. The Supreme Court ruled in late September 2026 that states could use the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) tool to screen registered voters for citizenship status, at least for now. The Trump administration expanded the SAVE system in 2025. It was previously used only for public benefits and was not designed to verify voter eligibility. "Using the SAVE tool is causing new hurdles for some voters," said Katherine La Puente, US democracy researcher at Human Rights Watch. "Sending vaguely worded letters as early voting began or offering federal-only ballots to some registered voters risks a discriminatory impact on people's right to vote." Federal law does not require proof of citizenship to register to vote. But some states have passed laws requiring it for state and local races, creating two separate voter systems. **Voters flagged across several states** In Utah, thousands of voters flagged by SAVE received notification letters over the summer. In October, more than 4,000 who did not respond were mailed ballots listing only federal races. South Dakota has nearly 6,000 voters categorized as federal-only, and Arizona has 47,000. In Utah and Arizona, these voters can provide proof of citizenship and vote in person on Election Day, but they cannot vote by mail—a method most voters rely on. In North Carolina, vaguely worded letters sent to 1,400 registered voters may discourage them from going to the polls. The letters arrived just two days before early voting began on October 15. In Alaska, election officials mailed letters to more than 3,000 voters asking them to confirm their citizenship and marked them inactive. Some can now only vote with a questioned ballot, which is counted only after eligibility is verified. In Ohio, a new law requires monthly reviews of the voter database and prompt cancellation of flagged registrations. Officials removed 75 people in September and 90 in October. In Arizona's Maricopa County, 207 voters flagged through SAVE as "not eligible" would not receive mail-in ballots and would need provisional ballots. After investigating 60 of them, the county attorney determined at least 52 were citizens. The county did not restore some voters' eligibility until the state attorney general filed suit. **Who is at risk** Naturalized citizens, people who became citizens as children when their parents naturalized, US citizens born abroad, and those without easy access to documents are particularly at risk. Many obtained their citizenship documents as children and may no longer have them. A Brennan Center survey found that more than 9 percent of those polled did not have proof of citizenship readily available—about 21.3 million people nationally if accurate. A Center for American Progress study found fewer than half of US citizens held a valid passport in 2024. Communities of color, immigrants, low-income people, and older people are less likely to have identity documents. **No evidence of widespread fraud** There is no evidence of widespread unlawful voting by noncitizens in US elections. CBS News reported that 156 people had been charged with voter fraud offenses since January 2025, out of approximately 227 million registered voters. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which the US has ratified, requires governments to ensure the right to vote without unreasonable restrictions or discrimination. "Election officials should take steps to eliminate hurdles to vote and ensure that voters feel confident to go to the polls," La Puente said.