Any attempt to limit the freedom to vote is an attempt to silence American voices. All across the country, states have been passing bills that would require voters to provide unnecessary and difficult-to-obtain documentation in order to register to vote.
Campaign Legal Center (CLC) has been at the forefront of challenging these laws because our democracy works best when participation is encouraged, but these laws do the opposite. Louisiana is one of the latest states to pass a restrictive and burdensome law requiring Americans to provide additional proof of citizenship to register to vote.
This new state law clearly violates the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA), a federal law intended to guarantee easy access to voter registration for all voting age American citizens. On January 28, 2025, CLC sent a letter notifying Louisiana about blatant violations of federal law, but the state did not take any steps to address these violations.
Campaign Legal Center and our co-counsel, Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (Lawyers’ Committee), sued on behalf of the League of Women Voters of Louisiana and the League of Women Voters of Louisiana Education Fund (the League), Voice of the Experienced (VOTE), NAACP Louisiana State Conference, and Power Coalition for Equity and Justice (PCEJ) to block Louisiana’s proof of citizenship law from being implemented, so Louisianans can register to vote without facing unnecessary hurdles.
Strict laws already ensure that only American citizens vote in federal elections.
When registering to vote, you must swear to your eligibility, including your U.S. citizenship, under penalty of perjury. Every voter registration applicant must also provide information that establishes their identity and confirms that they are who they say they are.
And lying about your citizenship when registering to vote can lead to major consequences, including financial penalties, jail time and even deportation.
Every state has safeguards in place to verify voter eligibility, maintain current and accurate voter registration rolls, and keep our elections secure. Requiring voters to show additional documents — documents many don’t have access to — to prove their citizenship only makes it harder for all Americans to register and vote.
In fact, more than 21 million Americans don’t have access to current documents that could prove their citizenship. That’s nearly 10% of all voting-age Americans. There is no reason voters should have to jump through extra hoops to make their voices heard.
These barriers don’t make our elections safer. They just make it harder for American citizens to participate in our democracy. And these types of barriers often target naturalized citizens, who have worked hard to gain their citizenship and freedom to vote, as well as Black voters and young voters.
Campaign Legal Center is at the forefront of the fight against burdensome documentation laws. From our lawsuit in Arizona to our lawsuit challenging the president’s illegal executive order to our work in Louisiana, we are protecting the freedom to vote across the country.
Support our work so we can continue to ensure the freedom to vote is protected in every state against those who aim to silence American voices.
