Does the Nevada DMV make the final decision on a voter's eligibility?
No.
Although the Nevada DMV does intake steps in the voter registration process, a person is only officially registered once election officials confirm their eligibility.
The DMV must initially confirm that a person going through the agency's processes meets Nevada residency requirements, is at least 18 years old and is a U.S. citizen.
Once the DMV confirms those criteria are met, the person's information is transmitted to election officials, who ensure an applicant's information aligns with DMV and Social Security Administration data and vital statistics. If it does, the person is registered to vote.
If a person notes at the DMV that they are not a citizen, they can still be eligible for driver authorization cards, which have looser identity verification requirements. People who receive these cards are automatically prohibited from engaging in the DMV's voter registration process.
Lying about citizenship status on a voter registration form is a felony.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
The Nevada Independent partners with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. Read our methodology to learn how we check claims.
Sources
- Nevada DMV, Explanation of Process
- KTNV, How does Nevada keep non-citizens off voter rolls? Channel 13 takes questions to DMV, state leaders
- Nevada Secretary of State, Elections FAQ
- Nevada Secretary of State, Voter registration application
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