Story perspectives

Trump Expands SAVE, States Find Thousands Mis-Flagged Citizens

6/28/2026

Summary

Story summary

U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration expanded the SAVE program to permit nationwide bulk voter-list searches.
It draws on the Automated Targeting System and Terrorist Enforcement and Communication System, which use FBI watchlist data misidentifying individuals.
State investigations in Missouri, St. Louis County and Texas found SAVE-flagged voters were citizens, exposing verification failures.
Analysts say a 0.02 percent match in a 49.5 million-record file could create tens of thousands of false-positive non-citizen designations.

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Story summary

U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration expanded the SAVE program to permit nationwide bulk voter-list searches.
It draws on the Automated Targeting System and Terrorist Enforcement and Communication System, which use FBI watchlist data misidentifying individuals.
State investigations in Missouri, St. Louis County and Texas found SAVE-flagged voters were citizens, exposing verification failures.
Analysts say a 0.02 percent match in a 49.5 million-record file could create tens of thousands of false-positive non-citizen designations.