CHARLESTON – West Virginia Secretary of State Kris Warner said he supports President Donald Trump’s recent signing of an executive order regarding voting rights.
On March 25, Trump signed the order titled “Preserving & Protecting The Integrity of American Elections.” The executive order reaffirms the principle that the U.S. Constitution guarantees states determine the time, manner and place of elections.
“Free, fair, and honest elections unmarred by fraud, errors or suspicion are fundamental to maintaining our constitutional Republic,” the order states. “The right of American citizens to have their votes properly counted and tabulated, without illegal dilution, is vital to determining the rightful winner of the election.”
Warner praised Trump’s focus on protecting states’ rights, especially the administration’s effort to shore up “federal resources to allow states to confirm citizenship for eligibility purposes and directing federal law enforcement agencies to provide support to states for alleged election crimes.”
“I applaud efforts on the part of the Trump administration to make elections more secure and, thus, increasing the confidence Americans have in the legitimacy of our government,” Warner said. “Giving West Virginia free access to federal records to confirm citizenship and directing federal law enforcement to accept criminal referrals from states will bolster West Virginia's efforts in maintaining accurate voter registration lists.
“States need this kind of cooperation to prevent foreign nationals from influencing elections and prosecuting bad actors who attempt to cheat.”
Warner said his office is further reviewing the rest of the executive order to ensure consistency with federalism principles, such as the policy of changing the deadline for returning an absentee ballot and certification standards for voting equipment.
Warner said he will continue to work with his elections team and colleagues around the country to ensure any directives for specific activities or implementation of policies come from the appropriate authorities, whether that be the state Legislature, Congress or the president.
During the current state legislative session, Warner has been working with lawmakers to pass legislation to require photo identification to vote, to streamline investigation procedures regarding the prosecution of election crimes and to increase transparency in political communications.
“Only United States citizens who are West Virginia residents should be voting in West Virginia elections,” Warner said. “The president's Executive Order is a step in the right direction to keeping West Virginia’s elections secure.”
With two weeks remaining in the 2025 West Virginia legislative session, two resolutions that would amend the state Constitution to ensure only United States citizens vote in state elections are languishing in committee.
Senate Joint Resolution 8 is awaiting action in the Senate Finance Committee after being passed by the Senate Judicial Committee. And House Joint Resolution 13 is sitting in the House Rules Committee after being passed by the House Judicial Committee.
The resolutions would modify Section 1, Article IV of the state Constitution to prohibit persons not United States citizens from voting in any election held within the state. The resolution would have to be adopted by both houses by a two-thirds vote to be put before voters in the 2026 general election. Last year, the resolution passed the House on a 96-0 vote and the Senate on a 32-0 vote.
But the House measure died on the final night of the session because of a technical glitch in the Legislature’s bill tracking system that temporarily showed the measure as being completed. By the time the problem was realized, it was too late for it and a host of other measures to be taken across the finish line because of a Democratic filibuster.
“We’re determined to see this pass this session,” Charlie Kolean with Americans for Citizen Voting recently told The West Virginia Record. “It’s very unfortunate what happened last time. We hope this issue doesn’t become a victim to the process again this time. …
“West Virginia needs to act now. This was basically voted for by everyone in the Legislature last session. And, West Virginia is Trump country. Securing the election is a big theme in the Legislature this session, and President Trump just signed an executive order securing elections.
“West Virginia legislative leaders have the opportunity to deliver to voters what they want. They don’t want to miss this opportunity.”
Sen. Patricia Rucker (R-Jefferson) is the lead sponsor of SJR 8.
"As far as I know ... it appears to not be on the agenda to run," Rucker told The Record. "I am not sure why as it had overwhelming support last year, and only died due to running out of time on the last day of session.
"Unfortunately, there appears to be little discussion on what constitutional amendments are a priority and there were many proposed. I still believe this is an important Amendment and would be popular with our citizens."
Delegate Scot Heckert (R-Wood) is the lead sponsor of HJR 13.
“The purpose of this resolution is just codifying in conjunction with what the federal law is in the State of West Virginia,” Heckert said previously. “That’s pretty simple. We did it last year. It passed overwhelmingly both in the House and the Senate. We just ran out of time on the last day.”
In recent years, Americans for Citizen Voting has worked to have similar measures adopted in states. Last November, eight states – including Kentucky – passed laws to keep non-citizens from voting. Last summer, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill requiring U.S. residents to show proof of citizenship to vote, but the Senate has not taken the bill up yet.
Currently, 20 state have laws to make sure only American citizens can vote in that state.
“Americans for Citizen Voting supports clear constitutional provisions that ensure citizen only voting,” Joe Reidy, vice president of public affairs for Three Point Strategies, told The Record. “We believe that HJR13 & SJR8 achieve that goal.
“Twenty states already have similar constitutional provisions. At least 11 states are actively considering legislation.”
Reidy said HJR13 is the bill that “all but passed last year.”
“It wasn’t controversial then, and it isn’t controversial now,” Reidy said.
Critics of the measure say it isn’t needed because state code already ensures only citizens can vote in West Virginia.
“State code already states that non-citizens can’t vote,” Dave Cook, general counsel with the West Virginia Secretary of State’s office, told The Record. “In other words, they can’t register to vote, and you have to be registered to vote in West Virginia.
“What the amendment does basically is eliminate any ambiguity. It clarifies things to include you have to be a citizen of the United States, not just a citizen of West Virginia, to vote. It would prevent future legislatures from modifying the code. There’s a loophole in the constitution someone could exploit, and this amendment would close that loophole.”
While there are no known instances of non-citizens voting in West Virginia, Cook did say there could be a slim argument that a municipality with a home rule program could allow non-citizens to vote in municipal elections, but not in state or federal elections.
“The joint resolution would close any possible loopholes,” Cook said. “And besides, our office enforces the code anyway.”
Reidy agreed.
“There is non-citizen voting happening around the country,” he said. “We want to ensure that doesn’t happen in West Virginia. We believe this is the most certain tool to ensure that never happens.
“Last year, it wasn’t an issue. We’re here to make sure it doesn’t fail in the same way it did last year. We just want to shepherd it along. Like so many issues, the Legislature constantly is looking at what other states are doing.
“Maryland has a number of cities that promote non-citizen voting. It happens there. We believe this constitutional amendment will ensure only American citizens are given the right to vote in West Virginia.”
And, Reidy said those behind the bill want to make sure it doesn’t get lost in the shuffle on the last night of the session again.
“We want to get it passed early this time,” he said. “Nobody wants to be sitting there looking for something at 11:59 on that last night.”
Photo: WV Secretary of State Kris Warner is seen here in his office holding a visual representation of the introduced version of HB 3016 (2025) relating to photograph identification for voting purposes and designation of citizenship on a driver’s license.