AUSTIN, Texas (CBSDFW.COM/AP) – Texas Secretary of State David Whitley announced on Friday the results of a year-long investigation into voter fraud. Whitley said his office has identified 95,000 non-citizens who are currently registered to vote in of Texas — 58,000 of whom have voted in one or more election. Texas Secretary of State spokesman Sam Taylor says they “are very confident” the citizenship data used is current. Texas Democratic lawmakers also urged caution, including Dallas state Rep. Rafael Anchia, who said “because we have consistently seen Texas politicians conjure the specter of voter fraud as pretext to suppress legitimate votes, we are naturally skeptical.” Texas in recent years has aggressively prosecuted voter fraud cases and has one of the nation’s toughest voter ID laws. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton issued the following statement on the matter: “Every single instance of illegal voting threatens democracy in our state and deprives individual Texans of their voice. We’re honored to have partnered with the Texas Secretary of State’s office in the past on voter initiatives and we will spare no effort in assisting with these troubling cases. My Election Fraud Unit stands ready to investigate and prosecute crimes against the democratic process when needed. We have obtained a number of successful non-citizen voter fraud convictions, including prison sentences for Rosa Ortega in Tarrant County and Laura Garza in Montgomery County. And earlier this month, investigators from our office arrested Marites Curry, a non-citizen charged with illegal voting in Navarro County. Nothing is more vital to preserving our Constitution than the integrity of our voting process, and my office will do everything within its abilities to solidify trust in every election in the state of Texas. I applaud Secretary of State Whitley for his proactive work in safeguarding our elections.” According to the Texas Attorney General’s office, Texas law allows lawfully present noncitizens to obtain driver’s licenses by showing proof of lawful presence to DPS. However, only citizens are eligible to vote. And Texas law currently does not require verification of a voter’s statement that they are a citizen. The Texas Secretary of State provided the information to the Office of the Attorney General this week, which has concurrent jurisdiction to prosecute election crimes. Republican Party of Texas Chairman James Dickey commented: “We applaud the efforts by the office of the Texas Secretary of State to expose this widespread voter fraud. Secretary of State David Whitley’s announcement provides undeniable proof that voter fraud has been significant – even in Texas. Identifying ineligible registrations and removing them from the voter rolls is the first step toward restoring integrity to our electoral process. No doubt these voters affected election results in 2018. We can not afford voter fraud in 2020 and must stop this abuse now. It is a crime and it is damaging to our republic. We ask the Legislature to consider what additional changes may be needed to reduce potential voter fraud and protect the right to vote for all Texas citizens.” The Republican Party of Texas said it will continue to work with legislators during the 86th Legislative Session “to create and pass legislation to secure the ballot box.” (© Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)<doc-sep>The Texas secretary of state’s office on Friday called into question the citizenship status of 95,000 registered voters who were found to have identified themselves at some point to a state law enforcement agency as noncitizen, legal residents of the United States. The office of David Whitley, the secretary of state, said its findings were a result of an 11-month investigation with the Texas Department of Public Safety that also found that about 58,000 people on the list had voted since 1996. The results of the investigation were referred on Friday to Attorney General Ken Paxton, who said he planned to open a potentially sprawling investigation. The two announcements seemed certain to reignite partisan debates over the frequency and impact of voter fraud, which Republicans have claimed is rampant in America. Democrats scoff at that notion, and a voter fraud commission started by (and later angrily disbanded by) President Trump found no evidence of widespread electoral fraud. “Every single instance of illegal voting threatens democracy in our state and deprives individual Texans of their voice,” Mr. Paxton, a firebrand conservative who has prosecuted isolated cases of illegal voting with gusto, said in a statement. “Nothing is more vital to preserving our Constitution than the integrity of our voting process, and my office will do everything within its abilities to solidify trust in every election in the state of Texas.”<doc-sep>The Secretary of State's Office said it has worked with the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) for the last year to evaluate information regarding whether any people identified to be non-U.S. citizens are registered as voters in Texas. AUSTIN, Texas — Texas Secretary of State David Whitley issued an advisory to county voter registrars on Friday regarding voter registration list maintenance -- including identifying any registered Texas voters who are not U.S. citizens. The Secretary of State's Office said it has worked with the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) for the last year to evaluate information regarding whether any people identified to be non-U.S. citizens are registered as voters in Texas. The Secretary of State's Office said their evaluation revealed that "approximately 95,000 individuals identified by DPS as non-U.S. citizens have a matching voter registration record in Texas, approximately 58,000 of whom have voted in one or more Texas elections." The Secretary of State's Office said they immediately provided this data to the Texas Attorney General's Office. Secretary Whitley issued the following statement regarding the evaluation: "Integrity and efficiency of elections in Texas require accuracy of our state's voter rolls, and my office is committed to using all available tools under the law to maintain an accurate list of registered voters. Our agency has provided extensive training opportunities to county voter registrars so that they can properly perform list maintenance activities in accordance with federal and state law, which affords every registered voter the chance to submit proof of eligibility. I would like to thank the Department of Public Safety for providing us with this valuable information so that we can continue to guarantee the right to vote for all eligible Texas voters, who should not have their voices muted by those who abuse the system." The Secretary of State's Office said, going forward, it will "use information it obtains from DPS on a monthly basis to cross-reference with the statewide voter registration database and match potential non-U.S. citizens who have registered to vote." Once a voter registration is identified as a match, the office will notify the county that person is registered in. The Secretary of State's Office said the following combinations of matches between information in DPS-provided data and Texas' voter registration database are used to identify possible non-citizens who are registered to vote: Last name, first name and full social security number Last name, first name and DPS-issued driver's license, personal ID card or election ID certificate number Last name, first name, last four digits of Social Security number and date of birth If a registered voter is found to be a non-citizen, they should receive a Notice of Examination from the county voter registrar letting them know their registration status is being examined on the grounds that they are not a U.S. citizen. The voter will then be required to provide proof of citizenship by submitting the registrar a certified copy of their birth certificate, a copy of their U.S. passport or a copy of their certificate of naturalization. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton tweeted the following Friday afternoon, regarding the findings of the Secretary of State's Office: KVUE received the following statement from Governor Greg Abbott: “Illegal voting in Texas will not be tolerated, and as Governor, I will continue root it out and punish it. Safeguarding the integrity of our elections is of utmost importance to the state of Texas. I am pleased Secretary Whitley is taking quick and decisive action to ensure only those who are in the United States legally are participating in our elections.” The communications director for the Secretary Whitley, Sam Taylor, said they are confident about the numbers and want voter rolls to be accurate.<doc-sep>
The Texas secretary of state issued on Friday afternoon the results of a year-long evaluation that showed 95,000 non-U.S. citizens are registered to vote in the state and approximately 58,000 of them voted in one or more elections. Texas Secretary of State David Whitley indicated the individuals were found over the past year by his office and the Texas Department of Public Safety in an evaluation of the voter registration rolls. Whitley issued an advisory to county voter registrars on Friday about voter registration list maintenance activities including identifying non-U.S. citizens who are registered to vote in the state. If a person votes in an election knowing he or she is not eligible to vote it is a second-degree felony in Texas. "Integrity and efficiency of elections in Texas require accuracy of our state's voter rolls, and my office is committed to using all available tools under the law to maintain an accurate list of registered voters. Our agency has provided extensive training opportunities to county voter registrars so that they can properly perform list maintenance activities in accordance with federal and state law, which affords every registered voter the chance to submit proof of eligibility," said Whitley. "I would like to thank the Department of Public Safety for providing us with this valuable information so that we can continue to guarantee the right to vote for all eligible Texas voters, who should not have their voices muted by those who abuse the system," Whitley said. Whitley's office provided the data to the attorney general's office, who vowed he would investigate and prosecute illegal voting activity. "Every single instance of illegal voting threatens democracy in our state and deprives individual Texans of their voice. We're honored to have partnered with the Texas Secretary of State's office in the past on voter initiatives and we will spare no effort in assisting with these troubling cases," said Attorney General Ken Paxton. "Nothing is more vital to preserving our Constitution than the integrity of our voting process, and my office will do everything within its abilities to solidify trust in every election in the state of Texas. I applaud Secretary of State Whitley for his proactive work in safeguarding our elections," said Paxton. Texas law allows lawfully present noncitizens to obtain driver's licenses by showing proof of lawful presence to the Department of Public Safety, however, only citizens are eligible to vote. Currently, state law does not require verification of a voter's statement that a person is a citizen. From 2005-2017, the attorney general's office prosecuted 97 defendants for numerous voter fraud violations. In 2018, 33 defendants were prosecuted for election fraud.