Washington State Democrats are advancing legislation that would expand voting eligibility to certain U.S. citizens living overseas, including individuals who have never lived in or even visited Washington State.
House Bill 2206 is scheduled for a public hearing Tuesday before the House Committee on State Government & Tribal Relations. A companion measure, Senate Substitute Bill 5017, is currently in the Senate Rules Committee. Both bills would amend state election law governing overseas and military voting.
The proposals have drawn sharp criticism from election integrity advocates, who argue the bills go far beyond protecting the supposed voting rights of deployed service members or Washington residents temporarily living abroad.
“As currently written, both bills would allow people born outside the U.S. who have never even set foot or lived in Washington to vote in all state and local elections,” said Bill Bruch, a Washington-based election integrity advocate who tracks state voting legislation, runs a Washington-focused Substack on voter fraud developments in the state, and circulated a detailed analysis of the bills ahead of Tuesday’s hearing.
Under the proposed law, so-called “permanent overseas voters” would be eligible to vote if they are at least 18 years old, are U.S. citizens, have a family member who is or was eligible to vote in Washington, and attest that they are not registered to vote in another state.
Bruch said the eligibility standards rely almost entirely on self-attestation, with no meaningful mechanism to verify identity, residency, or the claimed family connection.
“It’s all an ‘honor’ system,” Bruch said. “If he signs the ballot declaration attesting to his identity, the ballot must be counted. No questions allowed.”
Because Washington conducts elections almost entirely by mail, Bruch and other critics warn the legislation could create new vulnerabilities, including forged signatures, ballots cast without a voter’s knowledge, or voting by individuals who are otherwise ineligible.
“How easy would it be for a nefarious actor to exploit this ‘honor’ voting system to cheat in an election?” Bruch said. “Especially if they are getting paid to forge signatures and vote ballots?”
Opponents also argue the bills would allow individuals with no lived connection to Washington communities to influence local governance, including school board races, tax levies, city councils, and county commissions.
“Daily life is shaped by election outcomes, the taxes we pay, the housing we live in, the schools our children attend,” Bruch said. “Does it meet our expectation of democracy that the vote of someone who has never lived here should hold the same weight as that of a Washingtonian?”
Bruch further argues the proposals conflict with the Washington State Constitution. Article VI, Section 1 limits voting eligibility to U.S. citizens who have lived in the state, county, and precinct for at least 30 days preceding an election.
“Does the State Constitution matter to our lawmakers?” Bruch said. “It doesn’t seem so.”
Supporters of the legislation say the bills modernize election law and protect the rights of U.S. citizens living overseas. Critics counter that the measures create a new class of voters whose eligibility cannot be independently verified and whose votes could directly affect communities in which they have never lived.
The House committee hearing on HB 2206 is scheduled for Tuesday, January 13, at 1:30 p.m. Public testimony will be accepted remotely and in writing.
Lawmakers are entering the 60-day “short session” of the 2025–26 biennium, which is scheduled to adjourn March 12.
