The US Department of Justice has dispatched letters to election authorities in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, warning that officials could face criminal prosecution if noncitizens are permitted to vote or remain on voter rolls. The correspondence, signed by the head of the Civil Rights Division, gives states five days to outline how they will comply with federal voter eligibility laws and maintain what the department calls “clean voter lists.” The move marks an escalation in the administration’s effort to assert federal oversight of state-run elections, a domain traditionally governed by local and state law.

State election officials from both major parties have sharply criticised the threat. Michigan’s secretary of state, a Democrat, and Utah’s lieutenant governor, a Republican, described the letters as bizarre and legally unfounded, noting that noncitizen voting in federal elections is already illegal and, according to election administrators and academic studies, exceedingly rare. In Arizona, a battleground state, the Democratic secretary of state called the ultimatum offensive and said officials would continue to follow the law rather than “directives dictated by political rhetoric and intimidation.” The pushback extends to Capitol Hill, where some conservative Republicans have voiced concern that the proposed SAVE Act, which would require documentary proof of citizenship to register, would disenfranchise eligible voters—including married women whose names have changed, rural residents, and military personnel—while duplicating existing state safeguards.

The Justice Department’s letters arrive amid a multi-front legal campaign. The department has sued 30 states and Washington, D.C., seeking access to unredacted voter rolls; to date, 11 federal district courts have rejected those demands, and one appellate court has upheld a denial. Separately, federal prosecutors in Louisiana announced the arrest of an Australian lawful permanent resident accused of casting ballots in two federal elections after falsely claiming citizenship. The administration highlighted the case as evidence of the problem it seeks to address, with an immigration enforcement official warning that “aliens who vote in American elections … will face the consequences, including criminal charges and deportation.”

Viewed from Moscow, Russian state media have framed the Justice Department’s actions as part of a wider immigration enforcement drive that includes the cancellation of naturalisation ceremonies for citizens of 19 countries and the hiring of additional immigration judges. In parallel, a tightening of documentation requirements is visible beyond the electoral sphere. Argentine media report that the United States, Mexico, and the European Union have all reinforced passport validity rules for entry, while Spain has intensified controls on travellers from Ecuador, Colombia, and Venezuela whose passports are damaged, expired, or lack sufficient remaining validity. The Justice Department’s five-day compliance window is now running, and further court rulings on the voter roll lawsuits are expected in the coming weeks.