As the United States approaches its next presidential election on November 5, unfounded claims of voter fraud and alleged loopholes in the voting system are once again gaining traction on social media. A recent viral post, widely shared two days ago, asserts that Canadian noncitizens can cross the border to vote in the US, implying that US voting laws are too lax to prevent this.

DW investigated the post and its claims.

Claim: Noncitizen Canadians can cross the border and vote in the US.

“I am Canadian, but the USA doesn’t require voter ID, so I figured I would drive across the border and vote,” reads he posted on X (formerly Twitter). The post, which has been viewed more than 13 million times, includes a photo of a ballot marked for Republican candidate Donald Trump.

DW Fact check: False.

The image included in the post is a cropped version of a photo initially posted by Ashley Munoz, a registered US voter in Florida. A reverse image search confirmed that Munoz shared the original photo on X on October 13, 2024, to document her voting experience.

This post is not the only instance of similar unfounded claims that noncitizens, including Canadian visitors, can easily vote in US elections. Prominent figures like former President Donald Trump and X owner Elon Musk have promoted similar theories, suggesting that undocumented migrants are being allowed into the US to vote. However such claims are not verified by those making them.

Do US voting stations require ID?

US voter ID laws vary by state. Thirty-six states have specific voter ID requirements, meaning voters must present some form of identification, such as a driver’s license, state ID, passport, or even documents without photos like a birth certificate or Social Security card in some cases. Voter registration cards are optional but can serve as ID at the polls.

Can noncitizens legally vote in US elections?

No. Federal law strictly prohibits noncitizens from voting in US presidential elections. Having said that, a few states do allow non-citizen residents to participate in certain local votes.

Under the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996noncitizens who vote illegally can face fines, imprisonment, or both. Additionally, if caught, they may be subject to deportation.

State laws dictated ID requirements for votingspecifying acceptable forms of ID. In some states, documentary proof of citizenship is not always necessary. A voter registration card can serve as identification but registration requirements vary. Some states require proof of citizenship and ID, while others do not. However, all states are mandated to use it standardized registration forms requiring individuals to attest to their US citizenship under penalty of perjury, although the form doesn’t require physical proof of citizenship

Federal law mandates that voters provide a driver’s license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number when registering. Some noncitizens authorized to work in the US I can obtain a Social Security numberand unauthorized immigrants can acquire driver’s licenses in 19 states. However, the likelihood of noncitizens successfully registering to vote is very low, as states routinely cross-check voter registrations with state and federal databases to identify and remove any noncitizens from voter rolls.

Have noncitizen voters impacted US elections?

Instances of noncitizen voting are extremely rare. A 2017 study by the Brennan Center for Justice, a New York-based nonprofit law and public policy institute, found that noncitizen voting is statistically negligible. That means there is so little of it, that it has no statistical impact.

Another analysis by the Washington-based think tank, Cato Institute, revealed that in 42 jurisdictions, only 30 potential cases of noncitizen voting occurred in the 2016 election — approximately 0.0001% of over 23.5 million votes.

In 2022, Georgia’s Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger reported just 20 noncitizens were found to be registered among 8.2 million voters in the state. A Washington Post analysis of the Heritage Foundation’s database, which includes voter fraud cases from 2002 to 2023, found only 85 instances involving noncitizen voting allegations over two decades.

Ongoing misinformation on the US election integrity

Claims that noncitizens could influence election outcomes are just one of many attempts to erode trust in the US election’s results.

Recently another video went viral, that appeared to show someone in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, tearing up ballots marked for Donald Trump while leaving others untouched. The Bucks County Board of Elections and local authorities quickly debunked the videonoting that the envelopes and ballots did not match official materials. The FBI, the Director of National Intelligence, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency all attributed the video’s creation to foreign efforts aimed at undermining US election integrity and stoking division.