Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, criticized both parties for not supporting the SAVE America Act after Reuters reported that more than 30,000 noncitizens were mistakenly registered to vote in multiple states since 2000 due to software glitches and clerical errors. Speaking on the Senate floor, Lee argued that legislative efforts requiring proof of citizenship are necessary to address ongoing issues with voter fraud and noncitizen voting. He introduced the SAVE America Act, which has President Trump's support but is stalled in the Senate, aiming to prevent ineligible registrations and fraudulent voting by mandating verification of citizenship at registration and photo identification at polling places.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-25,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Sen. Mike Lee, a conservative Republican from Utah, criticized both Democrats and Republicans for opposing the SAVE America Act after a Reuters report revealed that over 30,000 self-declared noncitizens were incorrectly registered to vote in the U.S. since 2000 due to "software glitches and clerical errors." Speaking on the Senate floor, Lee argued that despite existing laws prohibiting noncitizen voting, enforcement has been difficult and ineffective. He emphasized that this issue of voter registration errors continues to occur repeatedly, questioning whether requiring proof of citizenship for voter registration would solve the problem. Lee likened avoiding detection in voter fraud to cheating at Olive Garden's all-you-can-eat pasta promotion, highlighting the ease with which ineligible voters might slip through current systems.
Written for “Voting Errors And Noncitizen Voters” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.
Firebrand conservative Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, slammed both Democrats and Republicans who have resisted passage of the SAVE America Act after a report found that 30,000 noncitizens were "mistakenly" registered to vote in states across the country since 2000.
asserted
noncitizens → slam → 2000
Reuters reported on Wednesday that more than 30,000 self-declared noncitizens were added to U.S. voter rolls since 2000.
asserted
noncitizens → report → 2000
The outlet attributed the erroneous registrations to "software glitches and clerical errors" and said that its review suggested "inadvertent bureaucratic failures, rather than organized efforts to register immigrants illegally."
uncertain
review → attribute → immigrants
The outlet said that this raised "questions about whether legislative efforts to require proof of citizenship for voter registration would eliminate the issue."
asserted
efforts → say → issue
However, while speaking on the Senate floor on Wednesday, Lee, who introduced the SAVE America Act earlier this year, said that "even though we have laws that prohibit things like noncitizen voting, those laws have been rendered difficult and essentially impossible to enforce."
asserted
laws → speak → voting
"That thing that they claim never happens, voter fraud or noncitizen voting, just keeps happening over and over and over again," he railed.
uncertain
he → claim → ?
Reuters reported that the errors occurred in California, Illinois, Iowa, Nevada, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and Virginia.
asserted
errors → report → California
The outlet said it was unable to determine how many noncitizens actually cast ballots and further noted that the numbers are not precise because " state data is often tentative and subject to revision."
This follows New Jersey Democratic Gov. Mikie Sherrill's disclosure that 6,600 self-identified noncitizens were registered to vote and fewer than 400 of those individuals cast ballots.
asserted
400 → say → ballots
Lee attributed problems with ineligible voter registration and voting to reliance on the "honor system" for self-attestation of voter eligibility.
asserted
Lee → attribute → eligibility
Referencing an all-you-can-eat deal at a popular chain restaurant that requires customers to show I.D., Lee said that "it should not be any easier for someone to get away with voter fraud at a polling location on voting day than it is to cheat Olive Garden through its never-ending pasta pass.
asserted
it → reference → pass
"
"And yet, that's exactly where we are today," he said.
asserted
he → say → ?
Lee presented his SAVE America Act as a solution.
asserted
Lee → present → solution
President Donald Trump supports the bill, which passed the House but has stalled in the Senate.
asserted
which → support → Senate
Lee argued that the bill would address both ineligible voter registration and fraudulent voting by requiring registrants to verify citizenship and eligibility at the time of registration and requiring voter I.D. and photo identification at the polls.
asserted
bill → argue → polls
In an interview with Fox News Digital, Don Palmer, senior legal fellow for election integrity at the Heritage Foundation, said that "this story really provides proof that one way forward is to simply upgrade and sort of help the driver's license agencies across the country improve their verification of citizenship while they're providing those services to voters."
asserted
they → say → voters
"All joking aside with the Olive Garden scenario, I love their food and I'm more than happy to show the I.D., I think the issue is I wish that the driver's license agencies and state agencies would take voter registration as serious as Italian food," he quipped.
asserted
he → love → food
"I think that that would be a bipartisan way of improving that verification of citizenship with databases, and I think there's some bipartisan support for that.
asserted
I → think → that
And so that might be a way forward, not necessarily, showing documentation of citizenship, but let's improve the driver's license agencies to verify citizenship, and let's improved real ID," he said.
uncertain
he → show → ID
The Aporia
