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Texas governor makes it ‘crystal clear’ only U.S. citizens can vote in state elections
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed legislation on Monday which he said makes it «crystal clear» that only U.S. citizens are allowed to vote in elections in his state.
«I just signed off on a joint resolution to make it crystal clear under the Texas Constitution that if you are not a citizen of the United States of America, you are not allowed to vote in Texas,» the governor said in a video posted to X.
Texas State Senator Brian Birdwell, a Republican, introduced Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 37 in January, and in the resolution, he proposed a constitutional amendment clarifying that voters in Texas elections must be citizens of the U.S.
Prior to the resolution, the constitution prohibited people who are under the age of 18, along with those who were determined mentally incompetent by a court or who were convicted of a felony, from voting in elections.
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Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed a joint resolution to amend the state constitution and make it a requirement for U.S. citizens to only be allowed to vote in elections in Texas. (AP Photo/LM Otero, File)
But the amendment proposes adding a line to the classes of people who «shall not be allowed to vote» in Texas, which reads, «persons who are not citizens of the United States.»
Birdwell’s joint resolution was approved by the state senate in April, then by the state house in May.
Abbott signed the joint resolution on Monday, but it still has one more step. In fact, Texas citizens will have the final say in November on whether the state constitution can be ratified to include the requirement in the state constitution.
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Texas voters will get the opportunity to have the final say on whether to only allow U.S. citizens to vote in elections in the state. (John Moore/Getty Images)
Fox News Digital has reached out to Abbott’s and Birdwell’s offices for comment.
Last month, a federal judge blocked an executive order signed by President Donald Trump that would require documentary proof of citizenship before being allowed to register to vote.
Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia handed down the order in response to lawsuits filed by three separate groups of plaintiffs over five different provisions in a March 25 Trump executive order relating to election integrity. While Kollar-Kotelly dismissed requests to block three of the provisions, requests to block two other provisions pertaining to a proof of citizenship requirement for voters were granted.
JUDGE BLOCKS TRUMP ELECTION ORDER DESPITE OVERWHELMING AMERICAN SUPPORT FOR VOTER ID
A voter fills out her ballot. (GEORGE FREY/AFP via Getty Images)
The first blocked provision sought to compel the Election Assistance Commission to amend standardized national voter registration forms to require documentary proof of citizenship. The second sought to require federal agencies offering voter registration to people on public assistance to «assess» the individual’s citizenship status before doing so.
«Our Constitution entrusts Congress and the States — not the President — with the authority to regulate federal elections. Consistent with that allocation of power, Congress is currently debating legislation that would affect many of the changes the President purports to order,» Kollar-Kotelly, a Clinton-appointee, wrote in her order. «No statutory delegation of authority to the Executive Branch permits the President to short-circuit Congress’s deliberative process by executive order.»
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Meanwhile, 25 states, including Texas, are considering some form of proof-of-citizenship legislation, according to the Voting Rights Lab, which is tracking such legislation. In total, 15 state constitutions have explicit prohibitions against non-citizen voting.
Fox News Digital’s Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.
Texas,Voting,Elections,Politics,Greg Abbott
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periodistas israelíes protestan por el asesinato, a manos del Ejército israelí, de decenas de reporteros palestinos. Foto: EFE
Reporteros del canal público palestino Palestine TV. Foto: EFEPeriodistas aprenden pronto que tienen una lucha entre manos
Trump interactúa con los reporteros más que ningún otro presidente que se recuerde. Foto: AP
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Fraud engulfs Minnesota as another blue state kicks off New Year with ID for trains — not votes
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While Minnesota grapples with a burgeoning fraud crisis, one blue state that still does not require photo ID to vote will require residents seeking to pay a reduced fare on state-owned transit present one in order to qualify.
Reduced-fare on NJTransit, and mass transit in other states, is often offered to senior citizens, military personnel or the infirm. Meanwhile, officials in Minnesota are grappling with a multifaceted fraud scandal involving subsidies paid to largely Somali-led outfits and interests that are allegedly illegitimate and often appear unverified as well.
However, New Jersey is one of 14 states that does not require the same stringent photo identification to be shown at the polls on election day.
The discrepancy spurred an uproar online as the local outlet Shore News Network drew attention to it in its reporting of the new reduced-fare ID requirement.
RED STATE GOVERNOR TOUTS MEDICAID SAVINGS AS MINNESOTA GRAPPLES WITH WIDESPREAD FRAUD ALLEGATIONS
New Jersey Transit bus 159R drives through Lincoln Harbor in Hoboken. (Gary Hershorn/Getty Images)
«Starting January 1, photo ID required for NJ Transit reduced fares but not for voting,» a headline from the Rutherford-based outlet read.
«This change is only for customers who have been using an NJ Transit issued non-photo ID as proof of reduced fare eligibility,» NJ Transit spokesman John Chartier told NJAdvanceMedia.
Current non-photo reduced-fare ID cards will no longer be accepted as of Thursday, according to the agency, which announced that Jerseyans must apply for a new photo ID either in-person or by mail – while providing NJTransit proof of age and/or disability and a recent photo.
COMER WARNS ‘WALLS ARE CAVING IN’ ON TIM WALZ AS MINNESOTA FRAUD PROBE WIDENS
NJ Transit said all non-photo Reduced Fare IDs will become invalid after the new year. Riders must apply for the new, free photo ID card online, by mail, or in person, providing proof of age or disability along with a recent photo, according to Shore News Network.
By contrast, on election day, voters must include their state driver’s license number on their registration form.
Failing to include that number on a registration form would then require identification be presented onsite for first-time voters; which could include a license or a utility bill, bank statement, paycheck or government document – not all of which have a photographic component.
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«This is how ridiculous Democrat-run states are,» one X user said. «Beginning January 1st, a photo ID will be required for the Reduced Fair Program, but it is still not required to vote. This is how they keep states blue by cheating.»
The volunteer good-governance organization New Jersey Project also slammed state policies:
«Photo ID needed for NJ Transit discounts but not for voting. Starting January,» the group said.
WALZ SLAMMED IN WAKE OF VIRAL VIDEO THAT RAISES DAYCARE FUNDING QUESTIONS: ‘NEEDS TO BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE’
«Priorities, Trenton?»
The blog New Jersey News wrote that state officials often claim voter ID «disenfranchises minorities» who cannot get such identification.
«Guess they won’t be riding the train either,» the outlet said.
MINNESOTA’S NEW MEDICAID FRAUD PREVENTION FIX WON’T MAKE ‘ANY DIFFERENCE,’ FORMER FBI AGENT SAYS
The group «Wake Up NJ» also fired back at the new policy, citing the same disparity between arguments against voter-ID and the state’s actions toward reduced-fare straphangers.
«New Jersey expects you to get that reduced fare for New Jersey Transit, but it’s OK [if you don’t] for voting,» they said.
The photo ID rule in-practice will allow a rider who goes a short distance on a state bus – considered a «Zone 1» fare – to pay 85 cents instead of the full $1.85. Commuters going to «Zone 3» – immediate suburbs of New York City – pay $5.30, but would be able to pay $2.40 under the reduced-fare ID policy.
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Longer trips see larger savings as NJTransit’s special limited-stop service on the Garden State Parkway from New York to Toms River and Atlantic City currently costs $57.40 to hit the casinos. Showing a reduced-fare ID card would allow the rider to pay $25.80.
Fox News Digital reached out to the New Jersey Secretary of State’s office, which oversees elections, for comment.
voter fraud concerns,minnesota fraud exposed,voting,travel,new jersey,business regulation
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While the United States presses for negotiations aimed at ending the war in Ukraine, Russia is signaling a parallel strategy — deepening cooperation with U.S. adversaries and portraying itself as resistant to Western pressure.
That posture was on display this week when Iran announced that three of its domestically designed satellites were launched into orbit aboard a Russian rocket.
The launch was broadcast by Iran’s Arabic-language state television channel Al-Alam News Network, which aired footage showing the satellites lifting off from Russian territory. The Associated Press and Reuters reported that the satellites were carried into orbit aboard a Russian rocket launched from eastern Russia, marking the seventh time Iran has conducted a satellite launch with Russian assistance.
IRANIAN PRESIDENT SAYS HIS COUNTRY IS AT ‘TOTAL WAR’ WITH THE US, ISRAEL AND EUROPE: REPORTS
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian shake hands as they meet in Moscow, Russia Jan. 17, 2025. (Evgenia Novozhenina/Pool via Reuters)
Iranian Ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali said the satellites were «designed and produced by Iranian scientists,» adding that cooperation between Tehran and Moscow continues «despite all the sanctions and threats,» according to Iranian state media cited by Reuters.
Iranian officials claim the satellites are intended for civilian purposes, including environmental monitoring and agriculture, though Western governments have long warned that Iran’s space program could advance technologies applicable to ballistic missile development.
The launch underscored a broader strategic relationship between Moscow that has expanded significantly since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Iran has supplied Russia with drones and other military equipment used on the battlefield, while Russia has provided diplomatic cover, economic cooperation and advanced technical support amid sweeping Western sanctions on both countries.
IRAN REPORTEDLY DEVELOPING CHEMICAL, BIOLOGICAL MISSILE WARHEADS AS PROTESTS SPREAD OVER COLLAPSING ECONOMY
A Russian warship and an Iranian army speed boat attend a joint naval exercise on Tuesday. (AP/Iranian Army)
The growing Russia-Iran alignment comes as tensions between Tehran and Washington continue to rise. After President Donald Trump recently warned that the United States could strike Iran again if it attempted to rebuild its nuclear program, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian issued a sharp response.
According to the Associated Press, Pezeshkian said any U.S. attack would be met with a «harsh and discouraging» response. Iranian officials framed the warning as defensive, arguing it was meant to deter potential U.S. aggression rather than signal an intention to initiate conflict. Tehran has repeatedly said its nuclear program is peaceful, a claim the United States and its allies dispute.
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Russian army Mi-24 helicopters fly above a warship at the Turali range on the Caspian Sea coast in the Republic of Dagestan in Southern Russia on Sept. 23, 2020 during the «Caucasus-2020» military drills gathering China, Iran, Pakistan and Myanmar troops, along with ex-Soviet Armenia, Azerbaijan and Belarus. (Dimitar Dilkoff / AFP via Getty Images)
The exchange highlights how Iran and Russia are increasingly positioning themselves as partners pushing back against U.S. pressure, even as Washington attempts to pursue diplomacy on multiple fronts. Russia has portrayed its partnerships with Iran and other sanctioned states as evidence that Western efforts to isolate Moscow have failed, while Iran has used its cooperation with Russia to showcase technological resilience under sanctions.
iran,russia,vladimir putin,donald trump,air and space
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