President Donald Trump signed a sweeping executive order on Tuesday aimed at tightening election security, saying the move will help ensure only eligible U.S. citizens vote in federal elections.
"I'm very happy to be signing the voter integrity, and I think it's going to be really great," Trump said during the Oval Office signing ceremony.
The order reinforces existing federal law that prohibits noncitizens from voting, while adding new tools for verifying voter eligibility and securing mail-in ballots. The White House framed it as part of the federal government's duty to enforce election law and restore trust in election outcomes.
Trump argued the action was necessary due to what he described as ongoing concerns about federal election practices.
"This came up with some great legal minds. They looked at the various documents and everything that was going on, because the cheating on mail-in voting is legendary," he said.
"It's horrible what's going on."
At the center of the order is a new "State Citizenship List," to be compiled by the Department of Homeland Security in coordination with the Social Security Administration. The list will identify individuals confirmed to be U.S. citizens over age 18 and living in each state, using federal data sources.
State election officials will receive the lists ahead of federal elections to help verify voter eligibility. Individuals will also be able to review and correct their information.
The administration said that being on the list does not automatically register someone to vote.
Trump said the order is part of a broader push for election reforms.
"I think this will help a lot with elections," he said.
"We'd like to have voter ID; we'd like to have proof of citizenship. And that'll be another subject for another time," Trump said.
"We're working on that. You would think it'd be easy. It's a 98% issue for Republicans ... and it's 86% with Republicans and Democrats."
The order also directs the attorney general to prioritize investigations into election-related violations, including cases where ballots are sent to ineligible individuals or are improperly handled.
Mail-in voting is another major focus. The order instructs the U.S. Postal Service to develop stricter rules, including barcode tracking and clear "official election mail" markings to help secure ballots.
In his remarks, Trump sharply criticized Democrat leadership over voter ID opposition.
"The leaders of the Democrats cheat. The only people that don't want to do voter ID are people that cheat. There's no other reason for it," he said.
"They've all sorts of reasons, excuses, but it's all nonsense. They want to cheat."
Before signing the order, Trump said, "So if you don't mind, I will take some time, and I'll make this signature absolutely perfect."
He signed with a black marker.
"OK, so that's a big deal. I'm very proud of it," Trump said after signing.
"We want to have honest voting in our country, because if you can't have honest voting, you can't have, really, a nation."
Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters praised the move.
"Voters deserve elections they can trust, and with today's executive order, President Trump is restoring that confidence," Gruters said in a statement.
"The RNC fully supports his action to secure mail-in ballots and stop non-citizens from voting. Protecting America's ballot box isn't optional — it's the foundation of our republic."
Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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