VA County Manual Says People With Noncitizen IDs Can Still Vote

An election officer training manual issued by Prince William County, Virginia, appears to instruct poll workers that people who show ID cards which are issued “only to non-citizens” may still vote if they fulfill additional requirements, none of which provide evidence of citizenship.

As the manual states, the Virginia Driver Privilege Card “is not acceptable because it is given only to non-citizens.” Driver Privilege Cards (DPCs) are issued to non-U.S. citizens who are unable to demonstrate any sort of legal presence in the United States, so most holders are likely illegal aliens.

The manual instructs election workers that people who show a Driver Privilege Card may still cast “a regular ballot if (1) they are in your pollbook and (2) have another valid ID or sign an ID Confirmation Statement.” Neither of these requirements proves the would-be voter’s citizenship.

(If the voter can’t even meet those requirements, Prince William County says he may “vote a provisional ballot.”)

Although positive evidence of citizenship is not required to vote in Virginia, the presentation of a card that is only issued to noncitizens suggests that person is not eligible to vote. It is a federal crime — across the entire United States — for any noncitizen to cast a ballot in a U.S. federal election.

By law, the DPC may only be issued to noncitizens who are ineligible for a regular license. Those who are eligible for a regular license include: U.S. citizens, legal permanent residents, conditional resident aliens, approved asylum applicants, noncitizens with refugee status, or citizens of Micronesia, Palau, or the Marshall Islands.

According to Department Of Motor Vehicles records provided in response to a Freedom of Information Act request, 49,040 Driver Privilege Cards have been issued so far in 2024. The program began in 2021.

IDs Accepted After a Person Shows a Driver Privilege Card Don’t Prove Citizenship

The Prince William County manual says a person listed in the pollbook may still vote after presenting a Driver Privilege Card if he furnishes another “valid ID.” But many of the forms of identification Virginia accepts fail to confirm citizenship status; they can be held by noncitizens as well as citizens.

Those options include a current utility bill, government check, or paycheck “containing the name and address of the voter”; a nursing home resident ID, a government-issued ID card from a federal, Virginia, or local political subdivision, a student photo ID from a U.S. college, a student ID from a Virginia high school, a U.S. military ID, or an employee ID card with a photo.

In neighboring Loudoun County, if a prospective voter presents a Virginia Driver Privilege Card, poll workers are being instructed to flag the situation to their chiefs, who will contact the Loudoun County Office of Elections, which will look into the situation and decide what next steps to take, said Communications Manager Samantha Shepherd. Loudoun County officials recently reported canceling the registrations of 62 noncitizens found on the voter rolls between January and August 2024.

The top of the Driver Privilege Card application states “Non-US citizens may use this form to apply for a Driver Privilege Card or Identification Privilege Card,” and the attestation above the application’s signature line states: “I certify and affirm that I am not a citizen of the United States.”

The Code of Virginia, § 24.2-1004.B, states:

Any person who intentionally … (iii) votes knowing that he is not qualified to vote where and when the vote is to be given, or (iv) procures, assists, or induces another to vote knowing that such person is not qualified to vote where and when the vote is to be given is guilty of a Class 6 felony.

Because the Driver Privilege Card is only issued to noncitizens, its presentation should lead election officials to suspect the would-be voter is likely not a citizen and is likely not eligible to vote. By instructing election officials to issue ballots to individuals who have provided evidence against their eligibility to vote, election workers in Prince William County are being instructed to flirt with a Class 6 felony. Noncitizen voting is also a felony under U.S. federal law.

Eric Olsen, Director of Elections and General Registrar of Prince William County, told me the county’s “officers are following the law and state guidance as they are supposed to.”

“An election officer can’t determine someone’s citizenship status even if they have that type of identification,” he insisted.

But is there really a possibility of a U.S. citizen holding an unexpired Driver Privilege Card? 

These cards are issued for a maximum duration of two years. Even assuming an illegal alien could somehow get a Green Card, by law he or she would have to wait five years before applying for naturalization. (For spouses of U.S. citizens, the waiting period is three years.) In a live web chat, U.S. Customs and Immigration Services (USCIS) confirmed to me that no illegal alien would be able to obtain U.S. citizenship in less than that time. The person’s Driver Privilege Card would expire during that time, and as a legal permanent resident, the person would presumably obtain a regular driver’s license instead.

In other situations where a would-be voter presents a form of ID that is not acceptable for voting purposes — for example, a library card — the ID first presented does not establish that the person seeking to vote is a noncitizen. However, the Driver Privilege Card is different, because its presentation is strong evidence that its holder is not a citizen.

Youngkin’s Action Needed

Early voting in Virginia begins Sept. 20. Gov. Glenn Youngkin should immediately issue an executive order mandating that no person presenting a Driver Privilege Card as proof of ID to any election official shall be issued a ballot in the 2024 election, unless he subsequently presents documentary proof of his citizenship.

Virginia’s voter rolls should also be inspected, since anyone with a Driver Privilege Card can still vote if he is listed on the rolls and shows an ID. The voter rolls should be compared to Department of Motor Vehicle data to reveal which voters listed have been issued Driver Privilege Cards, so that either their citizenship can be verified or they can be prevented from committing a federal crime if ineligible to vote.

I raised the issue of county officials being instructed to give ballots to people who present Driver Privilege Cards to Gov. Youngkin last week, and his office told me they are looking into the matter.

Daniel Brubaker, PhD, is author of By The People? The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election and Theft of Americans’ Right To Self Rule (Think and Tell, 2022), Red Is Democrat (2023), and Corrections in Early Qurʾān Manuscripts: Twenty Examples (2019).