OPINION:
In Federalist No. 52, James Madison underscored a principle at the heart of America’s constitutional republic: Government must be accountable to the people it represents.
Citizenship is more than a legal designation. Membership in the American political community counts voting among its most fundamental expressions.
Federal law prohibits noncitizens from voting in federal elections, but a prohibition on paper means little without practical safeguards to verify that the people participating are eligible.
In Georgia, we take that responsibility seriously. Over the past 15 years, our state has built one of the nation’s most comprehensive systems for verifying voter citizenship, maintaining accurate voter rolls and ensuring that local, state and federal elections are decided by eligible American citizens.
That did not just happen. It required a concerted effort to use every available tool, compare multiple sources of information and continually improve how election officials verify voter eligibility.
Georgia began with a significant advantage: We were an early adopter of the federal REAL ID program.
Approximately 98% of Georgia’s registered voters have a REAL ID driver’s license or state identification card.
When someone applies for or renews that identification, the Georgia Department of Driver Services reviews documentation establishing the applicant’s citizenship or lawful immigration status.
That information is shared with the secretary of state’s office, with records updated nearly every hour. Because Georgia driver’s licenses are generally renewed every eight years, this process also creates recurring opportunities to update information and identify discrepancies.
Georgia does not rely on just a single database or verification point. We also compare voter registration records with information collected through the jury system.
When someone signs a jury affidavit indicating that he or she is not a United States citizen, that information can be checked against the voter rolls.
The principle is simple: If someone tells the court system that he or she is not a citizen, election officials determine whether that same person is registered to vote. If that person is registered to vote, his or her name is removed from the rolls.
Georgia has also pioneered the use of the federal Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements program, known as SAVE, to resolve questions about voter eligibility. SAVE provides federal immigration and naturalization information that helps election officials determine whether someone whose eligibility is in question is a United States citizen.
We have made our use of SAVE the most efficient in the nation. At a February 2025 gathering of secretaries of state, I outlined best practices for using SAVE and proposed technology upgrades that would allow states to securely upload and review larger groups of records rather than manually checking names one at a time.
Before the recent court injunction blocking the expanded SAVE system, Georgia ran its entire voter file through SAVE to ensure that only eligible citizens could cast a ballot.
Georgia has defended its citizenship verification procedures when they have been challenged in court. During my time as secretary of state, we have successfully defended those procedures in two cases, including litigation involving Stacey Abrams’ Fair Fight Action.
Those cases centered on whether Georgia could continue using reasonable safeguards to verify that individuals registering to vote meet the state’s citizenship requirements. We defended the safeguards because eligibility rules are meaningless if election officials cannot verify that they are being followed.
It is important to note that Georgia’s experience demonstrates that strong verification and voter access are not mutually exclusive.
Our elections offer early in-person voting, absentee voting and Election Day voting. Eligible voters have multiple opportunities to participate, while election officials have multiple tools to verify that those casting ballots are eligible.
That balanced approach has earned recognition across the political spectrum.
The Heritage Foundation has ranked Georgia among the nation’s top states for election integrity. The Center for Election Innovation & Research has recognized Georgia’s voter accessibility, and the Bipartisan Policy Center and R Street have ranked Georgia among the national leaders in election administration.
More important, Georgia voters widely support the systems we have in place.
After the 2022 midterm elections, survey research found that nearly 90% of Georgia voters were confident in the election process and outcome. Approximately 97% rated their interactions with poll workers as good or excellent.
Those results reinforce that election integrity is not simply about preventing voter fraud. It is about giving voters confidence that the rules are applied fairly, that every lawful ballot counts and that elections are decided by eligible citizens.
Noncitizen voting is rare, and effective enforcement of verification requirements keeps it that way. Georgia’s approach is designed to prevent problems, resolve legitimate questions and strengthen public confidence before concerns turn into chaos.
As America marks 250 years of independence, Georgia offers a straightforward lesson: Protecting the connection between citizenship and voting requires more than a rule on paper. It requires accurate records, reliable data, modern technology, consistent enforcement and election officials willing to use every appropriate tool available.
• Brad Raffensperger is Georgia’s secretary of state.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.