A lawsuit filed against Nevada Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar claims his office neglected its duty to maintain accurate voter rolls, potentially allowing thousands of noncitizens to vote in the 2020 election. The lawsuit, filed by the Trump campaign, the Republican National Committee, the Nevada GOP, and a state resident, accuses Aguilar of failing to ensure that only U.S. citizens are registered.
Nevada GOP Chair Michael McDonald stated, “Any efforts to allow non-citizens to vote threatens the very foundation of our elections and diminishes the power of lawful voters across our state.” He emphasized that election integrity is crucial for reflecting the will of Nevada’s citizens.
The lawsuit argues that Aguilar has not established rules for verifying voter citizenship or removing noncitizens from the voter rolls, as state law requires. It references data suggesting that 3,987 noncitizens, according to DMV records, cast ballots in the 2020 election. This information is based on a sworn affidavit by former RNC Chief Data Officer Jesse Kamzol.
Kamzol’s affidavit reported that out of 110,164 non-citizen records from the DMV, 6,260 were registered to vote and 3,987 of these individuals voted. He noted that inaccuracies could be due to inconsistent name suffixes and missing birth dates.
Former Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske’s office reviewed the allegations and found that 5,320 individuals from the DMV file were registered voters, with 4,057 having voted in the 2020 election. Cegavske’s report dismissed the claims, suggesting that some of the individuals might have naturalized before the election.
A spokesperson for Secretary Aguilar defended the current voter registration system, stating that it includes safeguards to prevent noncitizen voting. She labeled the claims as unfounded and harmful to public trust in elections.
The plaintiffs are requesting a court order to mandate Aguilar to implement systematic voter list maintenance to verify citizenship and to complete these actions before the November election. They also seek a declaratory judgment affirming Aguilar’s responsibilities under state law.
