(NewsNation) — Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson reignited a debate over election integrity this week after posting on social media that her office identified more than 2,000 “potential noncitizens” registered to vote in Texas using an immigration database.
On Monday, Nelson posted on the social platform X that her office had identified 2,724 “potential noncitizen” voters after comparing the state’s entire voter roll with data from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ SAVE database. The post has gone viral, drawing millions of views, as early voting gets underway in Texas and several other states.
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However, that system isn’t designed to verify citizenship; it only flags immigration status, and matches are often incomplete or outdated. In addition, none of the names have been confirmed as ineligible voters, and Nelson’s office noted that Texas counties have 30 days to “conduct their own investigations into the eligibility of these voters.”
The state has previously come under scrutiny for inflated numbers related to election fraud claims. According to the Texas Tribune, a similar review in 2019 flagged 95,000 voters, but investigators found that most were U.S. citizens, and the state later apologized. In 2024, the outlet reported that Gov. Greg Abbott claimed 6,500 noncitizens had been removed from the voter rolls; however, that number turned out to be inflated, with only 581 confirmed as noncitizens.
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Election experts have said cases of illegal voting remain extremely rare and database matches like these often include people who have since become naturalized citizens.
With voting already underway, officials have warned that posts like these can fuel confusion and distrust long before any results are in.
