Trump Issues New Lawsuit
The Trump campaign has raised serious concerns about Nevada’s handling of voter registration, alleging that the state isn’t doing enough to prevent noncitizens from being listed on voter rolls. In a newly filed lawsuit, the Trump campaign is calling on Democratic Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar to enhance efforts to safeguard election integrity.
The legal action, filed Thursday, is backed by the Nevada GOP, the Republican National Committee (RNC), and a Clark County voter, all of whom have joined forces with the Trump campaign in targeting Aguilar, the Democratic National Committee, and the Nevada Democratic Party.
At the heart of the lawsuit is a disagreement over former Republican Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske’s examination of alleged voter fraud evidence presented by the Nevada Republican Party following the 2020 election. In 2021, Cegavske concluded that there was no substantial evidence supporting widespread voter fraud. The Trump campaign and its supporters argue that Cegavske’s analysis was flawed, based on an incorrect interpretation of Supreme Court precedents.
The lawsuit references a study from Harvard University’s Cooperative Election Study, which found that 4% of noncitizens in Nevada reported being registered to vote, exceeding the national average of about 2.5%. Additionally, public records indicate that 8% of a district court’s jury pool claimed disqualification due to noncitizenship, suggesting that noncitizens may be infiltrating the voter rolls.
Secretary of State Aguilar has pushed back against these claims, asserting that Nevada already has numerous safeguards in place to prevent noncitizens from voting. Aguilar’s office described the accusations as unfounded and detrimental to public trust in the electoral process.
In August, the RNC and Nevada GOP praised Aguilar’s office for removing over 76,000 inactive voters from the state’s rolls, applauding the efforts to maintain voter list integrity. Both former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris have underscored the significance of Nevada in the upcoming presidential election, with Trump making recent campaign stops in the state, including a visit to a Las Vegas restaurant and plans for another rally in Las Vegas this Friday.
Trump narrowly lost Nevada in both 2016 and 2020, and as the state remains pivotal for the 2024 election, the debate over election security continues. The Trump campaign, RNC, and state GOP are also challenging the counting of mail-in ballots that lack a clear postmark and arrive after Election Day.
Additionally, Aguilar’s office recently introduced a new, comprehensive voter registration and election management system, designed to integrate data from all 17 counties into a centralized database. Meanwhile, Republican Governor Joe Lombardo is advocating for a voter ID law, as Nevada currently does not require identification for most voters.
