Wisconsin Watch partners with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. Read our methodology to learn how we check claims.
No.
U.S. citizenship is required to vote in Wisconsin, but election officials generally don’t try to verify citizenship when someone registers to vote.
Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, made the citizenship claim Nov. 24, 2024.
The Wisconsin Elections Commission said Nov. 5:
- “Voters must attest to their U.S. citizenship on their voter registration form under penalty of perjury.”
- Wisconsin and federal law don’t provide for systematically verifying citizenship “beyond the attestation.”
- Falsely claiming citizenship at registration is a felony.
There’s no evidence of noncitizens voting in elections in meaningful numbers.
Voters Nov. 5 amended the Wisconsin Constitution to limit voting to citizens. Republican supporters said it would prevent any move allowing noncitizens to vote in local elections, as some U.S. jurisdictions allow.
Over 9% of voting-age U.S. citizens (21.3 million people) cannot readily access proof of citizenship, because they do not have it or could not access it easily, a University of Maryland survey released in June said.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
- Wisconsin Elections Commission What Are the Rules Regarding Citizens and Voting in Wisconsin?
- WISN 12 News UPFRONT: Speaker Vos 1-on-1
- Wisconsin Watch Noncitizen voting rarely happens. But Wisconsin voters are hearing a lot about it.
- Associated Press Noncitizen voting, already illegal in federal elections, becomes centerpiece of 2024 GOP messaging
- University of Maryland Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement Who Lacks ID in America Today? An Exploration of Voter ID Access, Barriers, and Knowledge
- Wisconsin Public Radio Wisconsin voters OK changes to constitutional language on citizens and voting
- Wisconsin Watch Has the District of Columbia adopted a law allowing noncitizens to vote in local elections?
- Ballotpedia Laws permitting noncitizens to vote in the United States
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
