THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
In the furore surrounding President Donald Trump’s tariffs you may have missed another of his edicts, signed on March 25, which could have major implications for American citizens, especially those living overseas.
The Executive Order (EO) entitled Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections is aimed at overhauling US federal elections. If enacted, it will change the way ballots are run and counted, including requiring voters to show proof of citizenship and demanding that mail-in ballots are received by Election Day.
Experts have warned that this could disenfranchise many Americans who do not have a passport or other legal documents proving they have the right to vote.
The order says the US has failed “to enforce basic and necessary election protections” despite there being no evidence of widespread voter fraud.
It also appears to override the powers that states have to decide on how they hold elections. In fact in the first paragraph the order criticizes the “American patchwork of voting methods” i.e. the rights of individual states. It also demands that states work with federal agencies to share voter lists and to prosecute election crimes, and threatens to remove federal funding from states in which election officials do not comply with the new rules. The order is expected to be challenged in court.
Millions of US citizens who live overseas have the right to vote, although it can be complicated to do so and few make the effort. The order could make it even more difficult to exercise your democratic rights.
Much of the order appears to duplicate the content of the SAVE (Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act) Act which is currently before Congress.
The American asked several groups that represent overseas Americans for their response to the order. We asked:
Why do you think President Trump is doing this? Is it aimed at disenfranchising particular groups? Why has he preempted the SAVE Act? Can he legally do this – isn’t it the States’ responsibility? What effect do you think it will have on overseas Americans? If overseas Americans are worried about this, or are against it, what can they do about it?
Here’s what they said.
NB these responses were received before April 10, 2025, when the SAVE Act was passed by the House of Representatives.
The Association of Americans Resident Overseas AARO, is a non-partisan non-profit association. Its Paris-based president, Doris Speer, said: “The EO oversteps the President's Executive authority and wades into matters which are in the purview of the States. It is likely that the EO will face challenges because the States have broad authority to set their own election rules.
“The requirements of the EO are highly problematic and would effectively disenfranchise overseas Americans, regardless of party affiliation. The EO would require the Federal Post Card Application to require: (i) documentary proof of United States citizenship and (ii) proof of eligibility to vote in elections in the State in which the voter is attempting to vote.
"Although overseas Americans do have passports (i.e., "documentary proof"), there is no secure way for an overseas American to provide it to a local voting office. Sending a picture of a passport as an attachment to an email is highly insecure and presents a serious identity theft risk to overseas voters. This would imply that overseas Americans must fly back to the States to present this document, which would have a chilling effect on voter registration. How many would do that? And, local voting offices are simply not equipped to handle the millions of Americans, both Stateside and overseas, who show up with various documents trying to register. There would be a severe bottleneck, which, again, would hamper voter registration.
"The "proof of eligibility" requirement to vote is equally problematic for overseas voters. What does that mean; what would be required? Overseas voters are legally permitted to vote in the last place in which they were domiciled before leaving the United States. How can overseas Americans "prove" this? Many have lived overseas for years, some for decades. What documents would they still have for such proof? What if the residence is no longer there, torn down to build an Interstate? What precise guidance would be given to the local voting officials to ensure fairness in the process? I do not see how this can work in practice.
“Challenges to the EO are more likely to be in the legal (not legislative) arena, so it would be difficult for overseas Americans to get involved. But, at a minimum, they should contact organizations which are known to support voting rights, both overseas and Stateside, and offer to help. Participate in the efforts of these organizations, which may involve filing amicus briefs in the courts. Also, this EO overlaps the SAVE Act, which is currently being considered in the House. Overseas Americans need to write to their elected representatives to tell them to vote 'no" to the SAVE Act. AARO has put in place a membership advocacy campaign, asking its members to write their Congresspersons against the SAVE Act.
“The requirement that all ballots be received by Election Day also would overstep States' rights with respect to elections.
“In general, the process outlined in the EO would be not only unworkable and unrealistic, but very costly to administer. It would effectively disenfranchise overseas voter participation and thereby violate this fundamental right, as protected by the Constitution and as long recognized by the Supreme Court.”
Susan Dzieduszycka-Suinat, President and CEO of US Vote Foundation, said:
“The EO makes very broad brush claims without context or rationale, and lists numerous demands which seem to be based on questionable grievances versus facts. It is not normal process for such demands to be dictated by the President through an EO. Normally there would be a legislative process, which would involve deliberating and reasoning that would result in a law that would account for variations across the states and define the cost to implement new requirements. The EO does none of that. It oversteps executive authority regarding elections and its’ demands are largely “unfunded mandates.”
“Our 7,500 election offices which conduct federal elections across the nation are notoriously under-funded and our election administration is under-resourced. And needless to say, there are no US election offices abroad!
“Regarding overseas voters in particular, the EO specifies requirements that are highly problematic from the standpoint of logistics and security. The EO requires overseas voters to 1) prove US citizenship; and 2) prove their eligibility to vote in their last state of residence. It does not specify how these new requirements would be achieved. The first could be achieved with presentation of a passport, but does not take into account that we have no accessible or secure system for that. Election officials do not have access to the databases that would enable them to confirm federal passport ID. If they cannot look up a passport by number, the logistical problem is compounded. It is impossible for overseas voters to efficiently prove their citizenship in person. Consulates are few and far between as it is, and many are now slated for closure. The entire endeavor would be very costly for the voters and the administration. There is also no secure system across the states for sending the passport information to an election office. Sending a picture of a passport as an attachment to an email is highly insecure and presents a serious identity theft risk to overseas voters. To put such systems in place across the 7,500 jurisdictions that manage federal voting is unrealistic.
“As for proving eligibility to vote in one’s “voting state”, what exactly that means and how it is done is not specified. This leaves vast room for interpretation. Administratively, for both the voter and the election office, this would represent a massive burden.
“Ultimately, these new requirements would crush overseas voter participation.”
A statement from Democrats Abroad said: “This order is a blatant attempt to suppress millions of absentee and mail-in votes—including those of overseas Americans. Trump vastly oversteps his authority in his attempt to overrule state and federal law. This EO, and the Republican House’s massive voter disenfranchisement bill, the SAVE Act, are a multi-pronged attack on American’s right to vote. And by singling out military and overseas voters to make voting more difficult for them, Trump once again shows his callous disregard for the men and women who serve our nation.
The Executive Order demands that states adopt documentary proof-of-citizenship requirements, threatens to cut funding for any state that allows absentee ballots to be received after Election Day, and also orders that the Federal Postcard Application be updated to include proof of citizenship and prior state residency. But the fact is, only citizens can vote–and it is already a crime for non-citizens to vote in US. elections. These measures aren’t about voter integrity; they’re about making it harder to register and severely over burdening election offices.”
Elizabeth Kelly, co-chair of Democrats Abroad UK’s Get Out The Vote team, said that she thought it could be a diversionary tactic to take people’s minds off Signalgate, and added: “The main controversy is that there's under-voting. I think people in public life and in American public life should want to encourage voting. They should want more people to get involved. And if anything, voting should be made easier, because that is the bigger controversy. Anyone who's an elected official should be working towards more civic participation, more engagement”.
When asked why the President appears to be preempting the SAVE Act, which is before Congress, she said: “possibly because, legislatively, that will fail, because there are Republicans in purple districts that will get lobbied by their constituents and who will not re elect them when they take measures to actually weaken our democracy.”
Republicans Overseas UK were approached but did not send a response.
Marylouise Serrato, Executive Director of American Citizens Abroad said that “ACA wants to see honest and fair voting however, the government should not make it harder for US citizens overseas to vote.”
She pointed out that the Executive Order: “mirrors the elements of the SAVE Act. Currently the UOCAVA (Uniformed Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act) requires states and territories to allow eligible voters to register and request an absentee ballot using the Federal Post Card Application (FPCA), which they submit by mail or, in some states, by fax or email, to their local election offices.
“In some states, Americans who live overseas can also register to vote by using their state’s mail registration form or online registration portal. These registrations would likely become impossible under the SAVE Act. This would disenfranchise US voters overseas. Also Absentee Ballots postmarked before or by the election day often actually arrive after that date so changes in deadlines for receipt of ballots would also disenfranchise US voters overseas.”
ACA has signed a letter along with other organizations citing how the SAVE Act (Safeguard American Voter Eligibility) will disenfranchise US citizens voters overseas. It has also created an online campaign where you can let your Representative in Congress know how overseas voting will be affected by the SAVE Act H.R.22: https://www.americansabroad.org/save_act_hr22
