Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin wants to change voter registration rules across the country

Virginia Gov. Glenn Younkin said Wednesday the Republican Party needs to take control of the House and Senate so it can change voter registration laws statewide.

The governor was responding to the U.S. Supreme Court's decision that allowed Virginia to continue a program aimed at removing from office about 1,600 registered voters who are believed to be non-citizens.

Virginia's program was put on hold after voting rights groups and the U.S. Department of Justice sued the state.

Younkin told Fox News that he was “incredibly pleased” with the Supreme Court’s decision, which he said was common sense.

“Common sense says that non-citizens should not be on the voter list,” he said. “Speaker Johnson’s advocacy for a national law that requires you to prove you are a citizen before you can vote is critical.”

“I hope for many reasons that America will expand our majority in the House of Representatives, flip the Senate and put Donald Trump back in the White House. One is that we need federal legislation that makes it very clear what it takes to do this.” “Register to vote in an election,” he added.

What is Virginia's voter registration deletion program?

Virginia has decided to remove 1,600 people suspected of being noncitizens from its voter rolls, prompting a lawsuit from the U.S. Department of Justice over its efforts to disqualify voters less than 90 days before Election Day.

The state's plan flagged people for deportation if they either checked a box on a Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) form indicating they were not citizens or if they left that box blank. State officials said every flagged voter received a notice and had two weeks to challenge the exclusion.

Last Friday, U.S. District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles sided with the Justice Department and ruled that Virginia must re-register those removed from the voter rolls. Virginia requested that the sentence be stayed pending appeal, but the judge refused and immediately put the sentence into effect.

Youngkin had vowed to appeal, while immigrant advocacy groups hailed the district court's decision as a victory for naturalized citizens, some of whom had been removed from the rolls under the governor's order.

What did the Supreme Court recently rule on Virginia voter rules?

In a 6-3 vote Wednesday that was split along ideological lines, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered that the program to relocate the 1,600 residents could continue. The order came two days after Virginia's Republican attorney general filed an appeal.

Those who opposed the program were disappointed, claiming that eligible voters would be prevented from having their voices heard on election day.

“The list of purged voters includes both new citizens and people born in the United States, all of whom have the same sacred right to vote,” Ryan Snow, an attorney for the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said in an emailed statement.

“Just the other day I spoke to a voter who became a citizen 30 years ago and registered to vote and has voted in every election since then without any problems. Now all of a sudden he’s no longer registered,” Snow said.

“This is a real injustice,” he added. “He didn’t even receive a cancellation notice, so it came as a complete surprise to him when he checked his registration online and it didn’t show up.”

How does Youngkin plan to change voter registration rules nationally?

Younkin continued to argue Fox News that his fight was about constitutionality and the protection of the votes of eligible voters.

He said national legislation was needed to ensure non-citizens could not vote in future elections.

House Speaker Mike Johnson introduced a bill in June 2024 that would require an ID card to prove citizenship in order to register to vote in federal elections.

The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE Act) was later withdrawn, but Johnson promised to continue the work.

Non-citizens are already prevented from voting in federal elections under several federal laws introduced in 1993, 1996, and 2002, while voting in state and local elections is also restricted by some state and local laws.

Requirements in place include requiring those who apply for a driver's license at the DMV to indicate whether they are citizens or not, as well as requiring a Social Security number from those registering to vote.

In various municipalities, some non-citizens, such as permanent residents, are permitted to vote on local issues.