ELX-004 · Elections · Voter rolls
SAVE citizenship database turned into a voter-checking tool
Stage 4 of 5: Legal action · Lawsuits, subpoenas, charges · Last development 15 Oct 2026
The Department of Homeland Security expanded SAVE, a database built to check immigrants' eligibility for benefits, into a tool states can use to check voters' citizenship, adding Social Security data. ProPublica and the Texas Tribune found it misidentified citizens as noncitizens, mostly people who were naturalized; DHS had to correct data for at least five states. Election officials in more than half the states use it voluntarily. In late September 2026 the Supreme Court allowed states to keep using it while a lawsuit continues.
Federal law limits systematic voter-roll removals in the 90 days before a federal election.
- People
- Department of Homeland Security, USCIS, Heather Honey
- Reviewed by
- Supreme Court, League of Women Voters (lawsuit), State election officials
Timeline
The League of Women Voters, EPIC and LULAC sue DHS in federal court in Washington, alleging it has collected voter files from at least 47 states and plans to combine them with commercial data in violation of federal privacy law. DHS did not immediately comment. [5]
Supreme Court allows states to use SAVE to search for ineligible voters; three justices dissent. [3]
Nevada tells DHS that all 185 registrants DHS had "confirmed" as noncitizens are citizens; DHS disputes this. [4]
DHS official Heather Honey tells election officials SAVE helped find over 300,000 dead people and 25,000 noncitizens on rolls. [2]
ProPublica and the Texas Tribune report hundreds of wrongly flagged citizens in Missouri and confusion in Texas. [1]
Responses
Sources
Cite this case
Public Trust Tracker. "SAVE citizenship database turned into a voter-checking tool" (ELX-004). Last updated 15 Oct 2026. https://publictrusttracker.org/case/elx-004-save-citizenship-database-turned-into-a-voter-checking-tool/
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