# Plain Language Summary: Voter Integrity Protection Act

This bill makes it a serious federal crime for people who are in the country illegally to vote in federal elections. Currently, voting illegally is already prohibited, but this bill reclassifies the offense as an "aggravated felony" under immigration law. That's an important distinction because it triggers much harsher consequences than regular criminal penalties.

Here's what this means in practical terms: If someone who is unlawfully present in the United States votes in a federal election (for president, Congress, or other federal offices), they would face criminal charges under federal law. More significantly for immigration purposes, this conviction would automatically make them deportable—meaning immigration authorities could use it as grounds to remove them from the country. The bill essentially adds voting while unlawfully present to the list of crimes that guarantee deportation proceedings.

The bill doesn't change whether it's illegal for undocumented immigrants to vote—that's already against the law. What it does is increase the legal consequences by making it an aggravated felony rather than a simpler violation. This could affect anyone without legal status who might vote, though it's worth noting that actual cases of non-citizens voting are extremely rare. The bill also doesn't create new voting verification systems or change how elections are conducted; it only increases penalties if someone is caught voting illegally.

Voter Integrity Protection Act

Biggs, Andy

Voter Integrity Protection Act This bill imposes additional immigration-related penalties for non-U.S. nationals (aliens under federal law) who vote in an election for federal office. It shall be an aggravated felony for a non-U.S. national who is unlawfully present to violate an existing prohibition against a non-U.S. national voting in a federal election. (An aggravated felony conviction carries various immigration consequences, such as rendering the non-U.S. national inadmissible, deportable, and barred from establishing good moral character for naturalization.) A non-U.S. national who is unlawfully present and who knowingly violates the prohibition against voting in a federal election shall be deportable.