Ahead of the upcoming midterm elections, the U.S. Department of State (DOS) is evaluating options for sharing passport information with state and local governments, as well as non-profit organizations. The goal is to set up citizenship verifications for voters.
An official from the department indicated that this sharing would be done in a way that protects individuals’ data while also preventing fraud and upholding the integrity of U.S. citizenship.
This initiative follows a Supreme Court ruling last Friday, where a 6-3 decision permitted the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to share citizenship information with local governments to confirm the citizenship status of registered voters.
Furthermore, the Department of Justice (DOJ) mentioned that under the Trump administration, there will be a cross-reference of passport records to spot noncitizens on voter registration lists, as detailed in a recent filing.
James Percival, General Counsel at DHS, referred to this development as a significant win for election integrity. He expressed concern that it required an emergency petition to the Supreme Court, just to enable the government to use its data to prevent noncitizens from voting unlawfully. He emphasized that American elections are meant for American citizens and that the administration will utilize all available tools to secure the electoral process.
The filing also noted that the DOS plans to publish a notice in the Federal Register, which is the official daily publication of the federal government, suggesting that information from the Passport Services Records system may be shared with other federal agencies—although the specific agencies weren’t specified.
These voting records are expected to contain personal details of all individuals who have applied for a U.S. passport, according to reports.
As reported by Democracy Docket, the notice may allow information sharing with federal verification systems for purposes such as verifying identity or citizenship for users accessing government platforms, voter eligibility, and other governmental services.
