A presidential order on election procedures — Executive Order 14248, signed in March 2025 — would be written into permanent federal law instead of remaining a directive a future president could simply reverse. The order requires people to show documents proving U.S. citizenship, such as a passport or birth certificate, when registering to vote in federal elections, and it sets a deadline requiring mail ballots to be received, not just postmarked, by Election Day. It also directs federal agencies to share citizenship-related data with state election officials. Voters registering for federal elections, along with the state officials who run those elections, would be directly affected by making these requirements permanent statute rather than executive policy.
Civil Liberties
- Voter registration requirements — Documentary proof of citizenship required for federal registration
- Mail ballot counting deadline — Ballots must be received by Election Day, not just postmarked
Congressional Summary
This bill provides statutory authority for an executive order that restricts voting in federal elections. Executive Order 14248, titled Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections, was signed by President Donald Trump on March 25, 2025.Specifically, the order directs the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) to update the national mail voter registration form to require individuals to provide documentary proof of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote in federal elections. The order specifies what documents are considered acceptable proof of U.S. citizenship, such as a U.S. passport or identification that complies with the REAL ID Act of 2005 and indicates U.S. citizenship.Additionally, the order directs the EAC to (1) revise the most recent version of the Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (which was adopted by the EAC in 2021) to prohibit voting systems that use a barcode or quick-response code in the vote counting process; and (2) review and, if appropriate, recertify voting systems under the new standards established in the order and rescind all previous certifications of voting equipment based on prior standards.The order directs the Department of Justice (DOJ) to enforce federal election law against states that do not adopt an interpretation requiring mail-in ballots to be received, rather than sent, by Election Day to be counted.The order addresses additional issues, including state election database access by the federal government, conditions for federal election funding, and additional requirements for DOJ to enforce federal election law.
Details
- Congress
- 119th
- Chamber
- House
- Status
- summarized
- Action
- Introduced in House
- Action Date
- 2025-03-31
- Date Added
- 2026-07-16
- Source
- Congress.gov →
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