Trump allies, undeterred by setbacks in courts and Congress, push anew for citizenship proof to vote

Columbus, Ohio — A documentary proof-of-citizenship requirement for voting in U.S. elections hasn’t been able to pass Congress and has been blocked by the courts, so allies of President Donald Trump's administration are pursuing another avenue to try to impose the idea — asking a little-known federal agency to do it.

By a deadline earlier this week, the independent U.S. Election Assistance Commission had received more than 380,000 public comments reacting to a petition to add the requirement. The proposal is being pushed by America First Legal, a conservative group co-founded by Stephen Miller, the Republican president’s deputy chief of staff.

The group is asking the commission, composed of two Republicans and two Democrats, to add the mandate to the federal voter registration form. It