Senator Marsha Blackburn, US Senator for Tennessee | Official U.S. Senate headshot
Senator Marsha Blackburn, US Senator for Tennessee | Official U.S. Senate headshot
U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty, both representing Tennessee, have raised concerns with U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland regarding the Department of Justice's handling of cases involving illegal aliens registering to vote in federal elections. In a letter addressed to Garland, the senators expressed their worries about non-citizens participating in elections and criticized the DOJ for not responding to an inquiry sent on July 12, 2024.
"We are deeply concerned by reports of non-citizens registering to vote and voting in federal elections," stated the members of Congress. They emphasized that with the presidential election approaching, "your Department’s inaction and refusal to provide any information regarding its efforts to promote public trust and confidence in our elections is especially alarming."
The lawmakers pointed out that participation by non-citizens poses a threat to election integrity and could undermine public trust. "Clearly, there is a non-negligible amount of voter participation by non-citizens in federal elections," they noted.
Efforts have been made at the state level across several states including South Carolina, Georgia, Ohio, and Tennessee to address this issue. Additionally, recent cases have been reported in Virginia and Texas.
The letter was co-signed by numerous other senators including Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), John Thune (R-S.D.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) among others.
Several representatives also joined as co-signers such as Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) and Andy Harris (R-Md.). The full text of the letter is available for review.