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North Carolina’s discovery of 34,000 dead people on its voter rolls has intensified calls for nationwide voter roll maintenance, with Republicans pushing for passage of the SAVE America Act as a solution to election integrity concerns.
The North Carolina State Board of Elections recently submitted over 7.3 million voter records to the federal Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database as part of an initiative to improve the accuracy of the state’s voter registration lists. The cross-reference revealed approximately 34,000 deceased individuals still registered to vote in the state.
Sam Hayes, executive director of the State Board of Elections, acknowledged the significance of the findings. “While we expected to find some cases, this is higher than we anticipated,” Hayes said in a press release. “The benefit of entering into cross-state and federal database checks is that it allows us to uncover issues like this.”
The discovery prompted Republican Rep. Mark Harris of North Carolina to call for immediate action on the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act. “North Carolina confirms 34,000 deceased individuals on our voter rolls,” Harris wrote on social media. “This isn’t a mistake—it’s a failure. Election integrity is non-negotiable. Fix it now. Pass the SAVE America Act!”
The legislation would require proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote in federal elections and mandate states to verify voter rolls using citizenship data. It would also establish procedures to remove ineligible registrants and impose penalties on officials who register voters without proper documentation.
However, the bill faces significant opposition in Congress. Last week, a group of Senate Republicans, including Sens. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Susan Collins (R-Maine), and Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), joined Democrats in blocking an attempt to attach a version of the legislation to a GOP bill funding federal immigration enforcement.
Jason Snead, executive director of Honest Elections Project Action, expressed concern that while North Carolina is taking proactive steps to clean up its voter rolls, other states—particularly those under Democratic control—may not be implementing similar measures.
“Voter list maintenance takes effort from state officials,” Snead told Fox News Digital. “North Carolina is another example of a state doing the work to root out bad registrations using federal records like the SAVE system. But too many Democrat-controlled states are refusing to do the commonsense work of cleaning up bloated voter rolls or stopping ineligible people from registering in the first place.”
Democratic leadership, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), has firmly opposed the SAVE America Act. In a joint statement last month with Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Rep. Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.), Schumer argued the legislation would “disenfranchise up to 21 million citizens who can’t readily access their passports and birth certificates.”
The Democrats further claimed the act would create chaos in state election administration and expose election officials to unwarranted criminal liability. Schumer characterized the legislation as an attempt by “MAGA Republicans” to “make it harder for Americans to vote” because “they know their agenda is failing, so they’re changing the rules.”
Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump has consistently advocated for the SAVE America Act. Last month, he pledged not to sign any other bills until it passes and rejected the possibility of supporting a “watered down version.”
The North Carolina Board of Elections has stated it will work with county election boards to remove the identified deceased individuals from voter rolls in accordance with state and federal law. This process follows established legal protocols for maintaining accurate voter registration lists.
The debate over voter roll maintenance continues to highlight the partisan divide on election integrity measures, with Republicans generally favoring stricter verification requirements and Democrats expressing concerns about potential voter disenfranchisement. As the 2024 election approaches, the issue is likely to remain at the forefront of political discourse across the country.
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7 Comments
While I understand the desire for electoral integrity, I’m cautious about overly aggressive voter roll purges that could disenfranchise legitimate voters. We need a balanced approach that upholds both access and security.
That’s a fair point. Voter roll maintenance is important but it needs to be done carefully to avoid unintended consequences.
This is certainly concerning. Regular voter roll maintenance is crucial for election integrity. I hope the SAVE Act can provide a nationwide solution to remove deceased individuals and ensure accurate voter rolls.
Agreed. Maintaining clean voter rolls is an important step to protect the democratic process.
This discovery underscores the need for continuous, nonpartisan efforts to keep voter rolls up-to-date. It’s an administrative issue, not a partisan one. I hope both sides can work together on common-sense solutions.
I’m curious to know more about the verification process used and how the 34,000 deceased voters were identified. Transparency around these procedures is important for public trust.
Ensuring the accuracy of voter rolls is essential for the credibility of our elections. I hope this leads to constructive discussions on how to improve data integrity and maintenance nationwide.