Texas Completes Citizenship Verifications in the SAVE Database

Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson today announced that her office has completed a full comparison of the state’s voter registration list against citizenship data in the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ SAVE database.

“Only eligible United States citizens may participate in our elections,” Secretary Nelson said. “The Trump Administration’s decision to give states free and direct access to this data set for the first time has been a game changer, and we appreciate the partnership with the federal government to verify the citizenship of those on our voter rolls and maintain accurate voter lists.”

After running the entire Texas voter list with more than 18 million voters through the SAVE database, the SOS has identified 2,724 potential noncitizens who are registered to vote in Texas. Last week those voter files were provided to Texas counties, who will now conduct their own investigations into the eligibility of these voters as part of their statutory responsibilities to remove ineligible voters from the rolls under Chapter 16 of the Texas Election Code. Once that process is complete, individuals who are deemed noncitizens that voted in a Texas election will be referred to the Office of the Attorney General.

A county-level breakdown of this data can be found here (PDF).

The process for removing noncitizens from the rolls is outlined under Sections 16.033 and 16.0332 of the Texas Election Code. Voters identified as potential non-citizens will receive a notice from the county voter registrar. These individuals may present proof of citizenship in order to remain a registered voter. If a response is not received by the county in 30 days, the registration will be cancelled. In the event that a registration is cancelled, it can be immediately reinstated by providing proof of U.S. citizenship to an elections office or at a polling location.

“Everyone’s right to vote is sacred and must be protected. We encourage counties to conduct rigorous investigations to determine if any voter is ineligible — just as they do with any other data set we provide,” Secretary Nelson said. “The SAVE database has proven to be a critically important data set and one of many that we will continue to use in Texas to ensure that only qualified voters cast a ballot in our elections.”

Texas was among the first states to partner with USCIS to compare its voter list with the SAVE database. In its initial review, the agency focused on those who may have voted illegally in the November 2024 election. That process led to a referral of 33 voters to the Office of the Attorney General in June.

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