Louisiana’s search for widespread noncitizen voting came up empty. ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ 
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Brennan Center for Justice
 
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Louisiana’s Republican chief election official confirmed what years of research have already shown: Only American citizens vote in American elections, with extremely rare exceptions. After reviewing some 40 years’ worth of state voting records, officials found just 79 potential votes by non–U.S. citizens. The findings underscore that Louisiana's new law requiring people to provide proof of citizenship to register to vote is unnecessary. Such “show your papers” policies chase crimes that simply aren’t happening and hurt real American voters in the process.
As heavily armed federal agents conduct immigration raids and crack down on protests around the country, state and local authorities are debating how best to protect their residents. While they can't block legitimate federal operations, they do have the power to decide whether and how they collaborate with federal law enforcement. A Brennan Center fellow and former FBI agent explains how states and cities can be a check on federal abuse.
Over the past few months, the Justice Department has requested voter files from at least 27 states. The Brennan Center is using public reporting to track those requests as well as states’ responses. The DOJ’s sweeping demands for sensitive information — including driver’s license numbers and the last four digits of Social Security numbers — are unprecedented. This push to build a national voter database puts both voters and election officials at risk, and it’s part of the Trump administration’s broader effort to undermine the next election.
A quieter part of the administration’s campaign to meddle in elections is its bid to rewrite the census. In a social media post last month, President Trump directed officials to start working on a new census that would exclude undocumented immigrants from the count. The Constitution requires a census every 10 years, and the results are used to make critical decisions, such as how many seats each state gets in Congress and how trillions in federal funds are allocated. It would be illegal for the Census Bureau to create a new census mid-decade and adopt new rules for whom to count.
Did you know that every state has its own constitution and supreme court? Both have gained new attention in recent years, as state high courts have often ruled that their constitutions provide broader protections for individual rights than the federal Constitution. State Court Report’s new explainer covers what you need to know about state courts and constitutions, from the unusual to the essential.

 
BRENNAN CENTER ON SOCIAL MEDIA

 
Virtual Event
 
Democracy’s Day in Court
Tuesday, September 30, 3–4 p.m. ET
The Supreme Court has steadily chipped away at protections designed to make American democracy fairer, more inclusive, and more representative. The rulings gutted a key provision of the Voting Rights Act, shut federal courthouse doors to challenges to partisan gerrymandering, opened the floodgates to big money in politics, and allowed the president to ignore checks and balances.
 
In the new term, the justices will hear cases that could accelerate this troublesome trend and produce landmark decisions. One case implicates how the Voting Rights Act ensures fair representation in state legislatures. Another challenges a campaign finance law that protects against political corruption. And another takes up the president’s asserted power to unilaterally impose tariffs. Legal experts and longtime Court watchers will break down some of the major cases on the docket and explain what the outcomes could mean for the future of American democracy. RSVP today
 
Produced with support from the Kohlberg Center on the U.S. Supreme Court.

 
 
Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law
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