Federal law requires potential voters registering to vote to have their ID numbers checked against state motor vehicle administration records or Social Security Administration records. But Georgians who possess neither a driver’s license nor Social Security number — or who submit one that returns a mismatch when compared to government databases — may still be able to vote with a low-security, non-photo document like a “utility bill” or “bank statement.”
Under the Help America Vote Act (HAVA), states are required to check information about prospective voters in federal elections against each individual’s information stored in the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles database. For individuals lacking a driver’s license, another system is designed to verify the voter’s information against Social Security records.
Theoretically, checking a person’s DMV records could include checking to see whether he indicated to the DMV that he is or is not a citizen. But notably, the possession of either a driver’s license or a Social Security number doesn’t necessarily confirm citizenship status since foreign nationals can obtain either. Georgia has an estimated 339,000 illegal aliens residing in the state, according to the Migration Policy Institute.
Registrants with No Driver’s License or SSN
I initially inquired with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s office on July 17, asking, in part, what happens if an individual attempts to register in Georgia but “cannot provide either their driver’s license ID number or last four digits of their social security number?”
Spokesman for Raffensperger’s office Robert Sinners told me that
