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US President Donald Trump signed an executive order Tuesday imposing stricter regulations on federal elections, including a requirement for proof of citizenship when registering to vote which is also part of Trump’s ongoing claims that the electoral system remains biased against him.
Moreso, Legal experts and civil rights groups swiftly condemned the order as an overreach of presidential power, warning it could disenfranchise millions of voters. Organizations such as the ACLU and the Brennan Center have vowed to challenge the directive in court.
Now in his second term, Trump has never acknowledged his 2020 loss to Joe Biden, continuing to push baseless allegations of widespread election fraud, particularly regarding absentee ballots, which have become a common voting method in the U.S.
“Perhaps some people think I shouldn’t be complaining because we won in a landslide,” Trump said at the White House while signing the order. “But we’ve got to straighten out our election. This country is so sick because of the election, the fake elections. And we’re going to straighten it out, one way or the other.”
Under the new rules, states must require documents such as a passport to verify citizenship during voter registration. States that fail to comply could face cuts to their federal election funding.
The executive order also empowers the attorney general to take legal action against states that include absentee or mail-in ballots received after Election Day in their vote counts. Several states currently allow ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted even if they arrive later.
Election law expert Richard Hasen of UCLA called the order “dangerous” and an “executive power grab,” warning that it could strip voting rights from millions of Americans.
The Brennan Center denounced the order on X, stating it “would block tens of millions of American citizens from voting,” while the ACLU labeled it “an extreme abuse of power” and pledged legal action, declaring, “We’ll see him in court.”
Federal law has long made it a criminal offense for non-citizens to vote in U.S. elections, with penalties including fines, imprisonment, and deportation.
