Esternita Watkins, a naturalized American citizen who had been looking forward to voting in her first presidential election, received a letter from Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen saying that her voter registration had been deactivated due to a noncitizen identification number. This is part of a new process implemented by Allen to flag anyone on the voter rolls with a noncitizen ID for further investigation and possible removal. While Allen claims that naturalized citizens can re-register to vote, advocates argue that this process violates federal voting law and discriminates against naturalized citizens. The advocacy groups, including the ACLU and the League of Women Voters, have demanded that Alabama stop this process and provide information about its development and use.
Allen, along with other Republican officials, have been focusing on preventing noncitizens from voting, despite little evidence that noncitizen voting is widespread. Former President Donald Trump and his supporters have falsely claimed that noncitizen voting is a significant issue, leading to efforts to crack down on it across the country. Advocates argue that these efforts amount to voter suppression, particularly impacting naturalized citizens who may be wrongfully flagged and have to go through a burdensome re-registration process. Despite efforts by advocacy groups to challenge Allen’s voter registration purge, he has not yet responded and continues to defend his actions, stating that he will not allow noncitizens to remain on Alabama’s voter rolls.
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