For years, Texans were told that concerns about election integrity were exaggerated. That illegal voting was a myth. That safeguards were already in place.
The data tells a different story.
Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson announced Monday that a cross-check of state voter records identified more than 2,700 illegal immigrants registered on Texas voter rolls. The discovery came after the state gained access to federal citizenship databases previously withheld by Washington.
The question is not whether illegal immigrants have been registered to vote in Texas. They have. The question is how many have actually voted—and how long this has been going on.
The Numbers
Texas compared its 18 million registered voters against federal citizenship records in the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ SAVE database. The result: 2,724 confirmed cases of individuals registered to vote who lack U.S. citizenship.
These cases have been forwarded to all 254 Texas counties for further investigation and removal from voter rolls under Chapter 16 of the Texas Election Code.
The geographic distribution reveals something troubling. Harris County leads with 362 flagged registrations. Dallas County follows with 277. Bexar County has 201. El Paso County shows 165.
The pattern is clear. The largest concentrations of illegal immigrant voter registrations sit in Texas’s most populous counties—the same counties that determine statewide election outcomes.
What Changed
The Trump Administration granted states direct and free access to the federal SAVE database for the first time. Texas joined a pilot program with the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and the Department of Justice to improve the database’s functionality.
Prior to this access, states were operating blind. Texas election officials could verify identity. They could confirm addresses. But they could not verify citizenship—the most fundamental requirement for voting in Texas elections.
Secretary Nelson called the database access “a game changer.”
She is correct. But the fact that this tool was unavailable until 2025 raises a more fundamental question: What was the Federal Government protecting by denying states this information?
The Process
Each flagged voter will receive a notice from their county registrar. They have 30 days to provide proof of U.S. citizenship. Failure to respond results in registration cancellation, though it can be reinstated immediately once citizenship is proven.
Confirmed noncitizens who voted in previous Texas elections will be referred to the attorney general’s office for investigation and potential prosecution.
This is not a purge. This is verification. The same verification that should have been standard practice from the beginning.
The Federal Government’s Role
The Federal Government controls citizenship records. States cannot access this data without federal permission. For decades, that permission was denied.
The result? Illegal immigrants voting in Texas elections while state officials were prevented from detecting or stopping it.
Some will argue these numbers are small. That 2,724 registrations out of 18 million voters represents a fraction of a percent. That argument misses the point entirely.
Every illegal vote cast cancels out a legitimate vote from a Texas citizen. Every fraudulent registration undermines confidence in the electoral system. Every day the Federal Government withheld citizenship data from states, it protected the mechanism that made this possible.
Texas Takes Action
Governor Greg Abbott signed Senate Bill 1 into law, implementing reforms that have led to the removal of more than 1 million ineligible or outdated registrations from Texas voter rolls over the past three years. This includes noncitizens, deceased voters, and people who moved to other states.
Abbott called the initiative proof that Texas is “leading the nation in election integrity.”
He is right. But Texas should not have to lead on this issue. Every state should have access to the same federal citizenship database. Every state should be verifying voter eligibility. Every state should be removing ineligible voters from their rolls.
The fact that most states are not doing this tells you everything you need to know about the Federal Government’s priorities.
What We Do Not Know
The 2,724 flagged registrations represent only those individuals the SAVE database could identify as noncitizens. How many others remain undetected?
The database checks against immigration and naturalization records. What about illegal immigrants who entered the country without any records at all? What about those using false identities? What about those whose citizenship status changed after registration?
Secretary Nelson acknowledged the review represents “the early stages of this pilot program.” Counties are expected to complete their investigations by early December. The review will continue with periodic checks against federal databases to ensure accuracy.
Translation: This is just the beginning. The real number is likely much higher.
The Larger Problem
Illegal voting in Texas did not start in 2024. It has been happening for years. The Federal Government simply refused to provide states the tools necessary to detect it.
Now that Texas has those tools, the scale of the problem is becoming clear. Harris County alone has 362 flagged registrations. Dallas County has 277. These are not small numbers in close elections.
The 2020 election in Georgia was decided by fewer than 12,000 votes. The 2016 election in Michigan was decided by fewer than 11,000 votes. Presidential elections have been decided by margins smaller than the number of illegal immigrants registered to vote in a single Texas county.
This is not a hypothetical problem. This is not a conspiracy theory. This is documented fact revealed by federal databases that the Federal Government finally allowed states to access.
The Solution
The solution is simple. Every state should have free and direct access to federal citizenship databases. Every state should be required to verify citizenship before registering voters. Every state should conduct regular audits of voter rolls against these databases.
States like Georgia, Arizona, and Florida are conducting similar audits. The results will be equally revealing.
But Texas should not have to wait for the Federal Government to act. We have the tools now. We have the legal authority. We have the responsibility to ensure that only Texas citizens vote in Texas elections.
Where We Stand
The Federal Government spent decades denying states the ability to verify voter citizenship. When Texas finally gained access to federal databases, we found thousands of illegal immigrants on our voter rolls within weeks.
The question every Texan should be asking: How many elections were decided by votes that should never have been cast? How many times were we told to accept results based on a system we now know was compromised?
The line has been drawn. On one side stands election integrity—the principle that only citizens should vote in Texas elections. On the other side stands a Federal Government that spent decades protecting a system that made illegal voting possible.
Texas has chosen a side. We are verifying citizenship. We are removing ineligible voters. We are prosecuting those who voted illegally.
The Federal Government finally gave us the tools to protect election integrity. Now every Texan can see why they withheld those tools for so long.
The system was not broken. It was designed this way.
