President Trump’s Department of Justice has formally opened a broad, nationwide investigation into potentially bloated and corrupted voter rolls across the United States.
According to Fox News’ Aishah Hasnie, the initiative stems from a March executive order signed by President Trump, directing Attorney General Pam Bondi and the Department of Justice to work with state attorneys general to investigate and prosecute illegal voter registrations—including those involving felons, deceased individuals, and foreign nationals.
On March 25, 2025, President Trump signed Executive Order 14248, titled “Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections.” The order instructed Bondi to work with state attorneys general and election officials to identify and investigate potential election crimes, such as voter fraud and unlawful registrations.
It directed the DOJ to establish information-sharing agreements with states to ensure that any evidence of ineligible voting or registration uncovered at the state level would be reported to federal authorities. The initiative emphasized removing ineligible names from voter rolls and prosecuting unlawful voter registrations.
The DOJ was instructed to examine voter rolls for ineligible individuals—such as non-citizens, deceased persons, and those with felony convictions—and to support states in prosecuting these cases where appropriate.
Specifically, the order directs the Attorney General to “coordinate with State attorneys general” to pursue foreign nationals who have unlawfully registered or voted in U.S. elections and to enforce federal laws prohibiting non-citizen voting.
The order also requires enforcement of existing voter roll maintenance laws—such as the National Voter Registration Act and the Help America Vote Act—which mandate the removal of deceased or otherwise ineligible individuals from voter rolls.
To ensure compliance, it authorizes the Attorney General to withhold certain federal grants or funding from states that refuse to participate in voter roll investigations or share relevant information.
In effect, states that decline to cooperate in identifying illegal registrations or election fraud risk losing related federal support. Bondi has already deployed teams to high-priority states, including California, Texas, and Minnesota, the report from Fox said.