WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, the League of United Latin American Citizens and Democracy Defenders Action released The Big Lie aka La Gran Mentira: Exposing Anti-Immigrant Election Lies. Published as the Senate debates the most anti-voter bill in our modern history, this new analysis exposes Donald Trump and his allies’ disinformation campaign around immigrants and voting.

The report details key pieces of the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (“SAVE”) Act, and its latest iteration, the SAVE America Act. It explains how these proposals would disproportionately harm minority voters and could silence eligible communities. The report also reviews Trump’s failed effort to impose similar measures through executive order, as well as what it describes as unlawful attempts by his Justice Department, under Attorney General Pam Bondi, to obtain voter rolls from Minnesota and 28 other states.

"As this report makes clear, the claim about noncitizen voting endures not because it is true, but because it is convenient,” said Juan Proaño, Chief Executive Officer, League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC). “It gives cover to those who would narrow the electorate and question who belongs. Latino families, naturalized citizens, married women, seniors, and working people should not have to push through the red tape of the SAVE America Act just to exercise a right that is already theirs."

The SAVE America Act is not just another voting restriction, but a structural overhaul that would fundamentally change how Americans register to vote by requiring burdensome and repeated proof of citizenship. The report warns that these requirements would turn routine life updates like moving, changing names, or updating a registration into barriers to participation. It also argues that existing federal and state safeguards already prevent ineligible voting, making the SAVE America Act unnecessary and increasing the risk of disenfranchising eligible voters without evidence-based justification.

“The SAVE America Act is built on ‘La Gran Mentira,’ a big lie: the myth of widespread noncitizen voting. As we show in the report, that is a fraud and so is this legislation. Both have been repeatedly debunked by data, experts, and even conservative institutions,” said Amb. Norman Eisen (ret.), co-founder of Democracy Defenders Action. “The SAVE America Act would make voting harder for millions of eligible Americans, especially Latinos and other marginalized communities. At the same time, it would do nothing to protect our elections. Our report shows that this legislation is dangerous, unnecessary, and profoundly antidemocratic.”

The full report can be viewed HERE. It is an updated second edition, with the original having been published in 2024.

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The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the largest and oldest Hispanic civil rights organization in the United States. Since its founding in 1929, LULACl has worked to advance the economic condition, educational attainment, political influence, housing, health, and civil rights of Latino Americans through community-based programs and advocacy.

Democracy Defenders Action brings together a nonpartisan team to work with national, state and local allies across the country to defend in real-time the foundations of our democracy.