DHS Requires Paper Ballots and Voter Database Checks for Homeland Security Grants

The Department of Homeland Security revised guidelines for certain homeland-security grants, requiring states to implement a series of election-related measures to receive full funding. States must phase out electronic voting systems that do not produce paper ballots capable of being filled out by hand and file plans for the transition.

They must also carry out manual election audits using methods established by the Trump administration and cross-check voter rolls against the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements database.

The affected grants are expected to exceed $1 billion this year and are typically used for counterterrorism efforts and disaster preparedness at the state and local level. The Independent reported that states that do not implement the required measures risk losing 20 percent of the funding. The U.S.

Constitution assigns primary authority over election administration to the states. President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social earlier this month that Democrats were attempting to steal the California governor primary and Los Angeles mayor primary from Republican candidates through late and massive numbers of mail-in ballots.

The Heritage Foundation found 36 cases of fraud out of 42.6 million votes cast in Arizona elections over a 25-year span.

David Becker, a former Justice Department attorney, stated he expects the new requirements will be blocked in the courts.