Voter registration; cancellation of registration, notice of cancellation, new address if available.
Summary
HB2513 amends Virginia’s voter-registration cancellation statute to require local registrars to send notice of cancellation to a voter’s address of record and, if available, to any new address reported by the Department of Motor Vehicles. The bill also clarifies and expands the notice process for cancellations based on death, felony disqualification, loss of U.S. citizenship, and moves out of state, while preserving existing protections for certain military and overseas voters.
Under the bill, registrars must promptly notify voters when their registration is canceled, including by mail and email if an email address is on file. For noncitizens identified through DMV or SAVE Program information, the bill requires advance notice and gives the person 14 days to submit a sworn statement of citizenship before cancellation. It also retains procedures for felony-based cancellations and requires reporting false statements on registration applications for possible prosecution. The bill further changes the out-of-state move provision from permissive to mandatory cancellation language and directs notice to both the old Virginia address and the new address, if available.
Impact
The bill would amend Code of Virginia § 24.2-427, changing how general registrars cancel voter registrations and how they must notify affected voters. Its practical effect is to tighten administrative procedures around voter-roll maintenance, especially by adding a requirement to mail cancellation notices to a newly reported address when available and by making certain cancellation actions more explicit and mandatory. It also reinforces existing safeguards for active-duty military members, overseas voters, and their spouses or dependents, who may not be canceled under the out-of-state move authority and may be reinstated under specified conditions.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have received generally favorable consideration in committee and on the House floor, with unanimous or near-unanimous support in the subcommittee and committee stages and passage in the House by a substantial margin. However, the later Privileges and Elections vote to pass the bill by indefinitely was close, suggesting that while the underlying topic was broadly supported, there was meaningful disagreement about the bill’s final form or policy direction. Overall, the discussion history indicates support for updating voter-registration notice procedures, but not complete consensus on the measure.
Contention
The main points of contention likely center on voter-roll maintenance versus voter access and notice protections. Supporters would view the bill as improving accuracy and ensuring voters receive better notice before cancellation, especially when a new address is available. Opponents may be concerned that mandatory cancellation language, felony-related removals, and citizenship-based cancellations could increase the risk of erroneous removals or create barriers for eligible voters. The special carve-outs for military and overseas voters also suggest sensitivity to fairness concerns for those populations.