Two legal scholars say U.S. election safeguards should respond to documented threats, using European rulings to examine a citizenship-document bill and allegations about Chinese access to voter data.
Oxford Brookes University Senior Lecturer in Law Michael John-Hopkins and Georgetown University Professor of the Practice of International Affairs Rebecca Patterson made the argument in an Oct. 19 essay for Just Security. H.R. 7296, the SAVE America Act, would require documentary proof of citizenship to register for federal elections.
A survey conducted in 2023 and released in 2024 for VoteRiders, the University of Maryland’s Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement, and the Brennan Center for Justice estimated that 9.1% of voting-age U.S. citizens, or 21.3 million people, lacked ready access to documents proving citizenship. It did not estimate how many would be unable to register under the bill.
In 2020, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit kept a similar Kansas rule blocked under the National Voter Registration Act. H.R. 7296 would amend that law, so the Kansas ruling does not determine the bill’s legality.
President Donald Trump has urged Congress to pass the bill. A July 30 White House fact sheet claimed China and its proxies had obtained as many as 220 million voter files through purchases, theft or hacking. It said intelligence officials flagged in 2022 that a Chinese cyber actor had acquired voter-registration data stored on commercial websites. The fact sheet described possible misuse but did not say the data had been used to change registrations, ballots or results.
An Office of the Director of National Intelligence assessment issued in 2021 found that Beijing had not interfered with U.S. election infrastructure in 2020, including vote tabulation or transmission of results. A minority assessment said China took steps aimed at undermining Trump’s reelection, mainly through social media, official statements and media, but found no information indicating an attempt to interfere with election processes. Those findings and the White House’s voter-data allegation address different conduct.
In a 2025 case concerning allegations of Russian interference in British elections, the European Court of Human Rights found that the United Kingdom had not violated the right to free elections. It cited two independent investigations and subsequent legal and operational changes. The court also recognized that serious hostile interference may require governments to protect electoral rights.
Romania’s Constitutional Court annulled its 2024 presidential election process after intelligence material was made public. The Venice Commission later set out general standards without judging Romania’s decision. It said annulment should be an exceptional last resort and that rulings about online campaigning should identify the violation and its evidence rather than rely solely on classified intelligence.
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) published its 2026 Election Infrastructure Security Plan on Sept. 24. The plan describes voluntary, no-cost services, including information sharing, technical expertise and vulnerability scanning, for the midterm election cycle.
