Florida and Mississippi Enact Voter Citizenship Checks

New laws spark lawsuit in Florida, raise concerns about voter disenfranchisement in Mississippi

Apr. 2, 2026 at 7:23pm

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A fragmented, abstract painting depicting the bureaucratic processing of voter registration forms, with overlapping geometric shapes and brushstrokes in muted tones of blue, gray, and green, conveying a sense of complexity and uncertainty around voting rights issues.New state laws requiring stricter voter citizenship checks spark concerns about potential voter disenfranchisement ahead of the 2024 election.Today in Orlando

Governors in Florida and Mississippi have signed into law measures that require officials to verify the citizenship of voters, sparking a lawsuit in Florida and raising concerns about voter disenfranchisement in Mississippi. The new laws come as similar federal legislation pushed by former President Donald Trump has stalled in Congress.

Why it matters

These new state-level voting laws are part of a broader push by Republican-led states to tighten voter ID and citizenship requirements, which critics say will make it harder for certain groups, including minorities and the poor, to cast ballots. The legal challenges and political debates around these issues could have significant implications for voting rights and election integrity ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

The details

The Florida law, signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, requires voters to provide a birth certificate, passport or naturalization certificate as proof of citizenship if their eligibility is challenged. Civil rights groups say this will disenfranchise many eligible voters who lack these documents. The Mississippi law, signed by Gov. Tate Reeves, requires additional citizenship checks for voter registration applicants and annual checks of voter rolls against an ICE database.

  • The Florida law takes effect on January 1, 2027.
  • The Mississippi law takes effect on July 1, 2026.

The players

Ron DeSantis

The Republican governor of Florida who signed the new voter citizenship verification law.

Tate Reeves

The Republican governor of Mississippi who signed the new voter citizenship verification law.

Civil Rights Organizations

Groups that have filed a lawsuit challenging the Florida law, arguing it will make it harder for Floridians to vote.

Donald Trump

The former U.S. president who has pushed for similar federal legislation to mandate proof of citizenship to register to vote.

Laura Kelly

The Democratic governor of Kansas who must decide whether to sign a GOP-backed voter citizenship bill passed by the state legislature.

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What they’re saying

“Many eligible voters do not have these documents and cannot obtain them for a variety of reasons — including because they were born without a birth certificate in the segregated South, because their documents were destroyed in a hurricane, or because they cannot afford the hundreds of dollars it costs to replace them.”

— Civil Rights Organizations

“In Florida, we will always stand up for election integrity.”

— Ron DeSantis, Governor of Florida

“This is another win for election integrity in Mississippi (and America). We will continue to do everything in our power to make it infinitely harder – with a goal to make it impossible – to cheat in our elections!”

— Tate Reeves, Governor of Mississippi

What’s next

The Florida law is already facing a legal challenge from civil rights groups, and the outcome of that lawsuit could have implications for similar voter citizenship verification measures in other states. In Kansas, Gov. Laura Kelly has until next week to decide whether to sign or veto a GOP-backed voter citizenship bill passed by the state legislature.

The takeaway

The new voter citizenship verification laws in Florida and Mississippi are the latest examples of Republican-led states tightening voting requirements, which critics say will disproportionately impact certain groups of voters. These state-level battles over voting rights and election integrity are likely to continue playing out in the courts and legislatures ahead of the 2024 presidential election.