in effect
This is a presidential executive order (Executive Order 14248, signed March 25, 2025), a directive from the President instructing federal agencies on how to carry out existing election laws. It does not itself pass new law; it orders agencies like the Election Assistance Commission (EAC), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Department of Justice (DOJ), and others to enforce federal rules on voter citizenship, ballot deadlines, and voting-system security more aggressively.
Within 30 days, the EAC is told to add a documentary proof-of-citizenship requirement (such as a passport, REAL ID that states citizenship, military ID, or qualifying government photo ID) to the national mail voter registration form. DHS, working with the “DOGE Administrator,” is directed to review each state’s voter rolls against federal immigration and other databases, and within 90 days DHS must give DOJ information on foreign nationals who indicated they registered or voted. The EAC is told to rewrite voting-system guidelines so ballots no longer record a vote inside a barcode or QR code (except for disability accommodations) and to require a voter-verifiable paper record, and within 180 days to review and re-certify systems under the new standards while rescinding older certifications. The order also directs agencies to cut or condition federal election funding to states that do not comply — including states that count mail-in ballots received after Election Day — and directs the Attorney General to enforce a uniform Election Day receipt deadline and to prioritize prosecuting non-citizen voting and foreign election spending. It further orders all agencies to stop implementing a prior order, EO 14019, and report compliance within 90 days.
Federal agencies (EAC, DHS, DOJ, the Social Security Administration, State, and Defense) receive assignments and deadlines, and state and local election officials would face new data-sharing requests, list-maintenance scrutiny, and possible loss of federal funds if they do not comply. Voters and voter-registration applicants could face a new requirement to show documentary proof of citizenship, and military and overseas voters would see updated application forms. The order also targets non-citizens accused of registering or voting and foreign nationals involved in election spending, and states that decline to share election-crime information could see federal grants reviewed for withholding.