In Dallas, Tarrant, Denton and Collin counties, the flagged voters represent a fraction of all registrations. The state flagged:<\/p>\n
- \n
- 277 voters in Dallas County<\/li>\n
- 145 voters in Tarrant County<\/li>\n
- 84 voters in Denton County<\/li>\n
- 109 voters in Collin County<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
That\u2019s 0.01% to 0.02% of registered voters in those counties,\u00a0based on March 2024 voter registration data.<\/a><\/p>\n
\u201cThough it\u2019s not a big number on the face of it, I do see the importance of having well-maintained voter rolls,\u201d Collin County Elections Administrator Kaleb Breaux said.<\/p>\n
The next step is to review the flagged registrations, Breaux explained. If someone\u2019s citizenship status isn\u2019t clear, elections staff will send out a notice giving that person 30 days to prove their citizenship or be removed from the rolls. People can also bring proof to a polling location to get reinstated, Breaux said.<\/p>\n
Nelson\u2019s office compared the state\u2019s voter rolls with information from a national database called SAVE, which was originally designed to verify people\u2019s immigration status for federal benefits,\u00a0The Texas Newsroom reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Texas is one of the first states to use the SAVE database to check voter eligibility, after the Trump administration improved its searchability and made it free for states to use,\u00a0according to The Texas Tribune<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Critics of the SAVE voter registration checks say they\u2019re worried about privacy and accuracy. The League of Women Voters\u00a0sued the Trump administration this month<\/a>, saying the citizenship lookup tool could mislabel citizens as noncitizens and take away their right to vote.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fortworthreport.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/EarlyVote_Oct21_CamiloDiaz-1.jpg?resize=780%2C520&quality=89&ssl=1\")
On the first day of early voting in October 2024, Tarrant County residents lined up outside the Charles F. Griffin Building to cast their ballots. (Camilo Diaz | Fort Worth Report) <\/p>\nSAVE\u2019s results are \u201csometimes based on incomplete or outdated information,\u201d and while its citizenship information can be useful, it shouldn\u2019t be used to make any final judgments, the nonprofit think tank Brennan Center for Justice\u00a0argued in a July report.<\/a><\/p>\n
Breaux\u2019s office is also checking to see if people\u2019s registrations should have been accepted in the first place. For example, if someone marked they were not a U.S. citizen on their voter registration form, but an elections worker let it through by accident, their registration would be cancelled immediately, Breaux said. The elections office will send a cancellation notice to their address on file.<\/p>\n
Breaux isn\u2019t sure yet if anyone falls into that category, he said. In Denton, 13 of the 84 flagged voters checked \u201cno\u201d on the box asking if they\u2019re a U.S. citizen, Elections Administrator Frank Phillips told\u00a0the Denton Record-Chronicle.<\/a><\/p>\n
It\u2019s not abnormal for the state to give counties a heads-up about potential noncitizens on the rolls, but normally it\u2019s \u201cjust a couple of voters,\u201d Phillips told the paper.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is important to remember that these voters have the opportunity to show that they are U.S. citizens,\u201d Phillips said.<\/p>\n
Noncitizen voting is illegal, but it\u2019s rare,\u00a0researchers have found<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 despite President Donald Trump\u2019s claims that undocumented people\u00a0could sway elections against him<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Trump congratulated Nelson for using the SAVE database, in\u00a0a letter Nelson posted on X<\/a>\u00a0Wednesday. Trump claimed many states \u201care currently failing to enforce basic and necessary election laws.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAs we prepare to celebrate 250 glorious years of American independence next July, we must continue working together to protect our birthright of freedom and usher in the golden age of America,\u201d Trump wrote.<\/p>\n
\n
Honored to be recognized by our President as one of the first Secretaries of State to step up and protect the integrity of our elections by using the federal SAVE database. pic.twitter.com\/doVttqnX77<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Secretary Jane Nelson (@SecJaneNelson) October 22, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Republican Tarrant County Judge Tim O\u2019Hare has made election integrity one of his priorities since he took office in 2023. He praised Nelson\u2019s work in a statement posted on social media Wednesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cSafe and secure elections are a key pillar to a free society,\u201d he wrote. \u201cIllegal aliens and other noncitizens will not be allowed to vote in Tarrant County and will be held to account for breaking any Texas or federal laws.\u201d<\/p>\n
People who don\u2019t have citizenship and have a Texas voting history will be referred to the Texas Attorney General\u2019s Office, according to Nelson.<\/p>\n
In Tarrant County, they will also be referred to the Election Integrity Task Force, O\u2019Hare said. That\u2019s\u00a0a controversial partnership<\/a>\u00a0between the local district attorney\u2019s office and the sheriff\u2019s office.<\/p>\n
As of last year, the task force had looked into 82 voter fraud complaints, none of which resulted in criminal charges,\u00a0County Administrator Chandler Merritt said<\/a>.<\/p>\n
KERA News reached out to O\u2019Hare\u2019s office, the Tarrant County DA\u2019s Office, and the Tarrant County Sheriff\u2019s Office for comment.When KERA News reached out to the Tarrant County elections administrator, he directed us to the county\u2019s spokesperson, who directed us to O\u2019Hare.<\/p>\n
Dallas County Elections also did not respond to a request for an interview before this story\u2019s deadline.<\/p>\n
Last year, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott\u00a0claimed more than 6,500 noncitizens had been removed from voter rolls<\/a>\u00a0since 2021.\u00a0An investigation from The Texas Tribune, ProPublica and Votebeat<\/a>\u00a0found that number was probably inflated. It also found some U.S. citizens had been misidentified as noncitizens and removed from the rolls when they didn\u2019t answer letters about their citizenship status.<\/p>\n
Nelson\u2019s office sent 33 cases of potential noncitizen voting to Attorney General Ken Paxton\u2019s Office in June, using the SAVE database,\u00a0according to a press release<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Got a tip? Email Miranda Suarez at\u00a0msuarez@kera.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n
KERA News is made possible through the generosity of our members. If you find this reporting valuable, consider\u00a0making a tax-deductible gift<\/a>\u00a0today. Thank you.<\/p>\n
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