Non-citizen suffrage in the United States explained

Non-citizen suffrage in the United States has been greatly reduced over time and historically has been a contentious issue.[1] [2]

Before 1926, as many as 40 states allowed non-citizens to vote in elections.[3] While federal law does not prohibit noncitizens from voting in state or local elections, no state has allowed noncitizens to vote in statewide elections since Arkansas became the last state to outlaw noncitizen voting in state elections in 1926.[4]

Since 1997, the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 has prohibited non-citizens from voting in federal elections, with the threat of fines, imprisonment, inadmissibility and deportation.[5] [6] [7] Exempt from punishment is any noncitizen who, at the time of voting, had two natural or adoptive U.S. citizen parents, who began permanently living in the United States before turning 16 years old, and who reasonably believed that they were a citizen of the United States.

As of December 2022, non-citizen voting is allowed for a handful of local elections, including in Winooski and Montpelier in Vermont, and in eleven cities in Maryland near Washington, D.C. In 2023, D.C. itself started allowing local non-citizen voting. Additionally, the U.S. territories of American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands allow non-citizen US nationals to vote, a status granted to all persons born in American Samoa.[8] [9] All persons born in the Northern Mariana Islands automatically become US citizens at birth, as opposed to becoming US nationals at birth. Guam and Hawaiʻi, by contrast, do not allow non-citizen US nationals to vote. Turnout by non-citizens in many of these cities remains very low (sometimes less than 0.5% of voters), with some non-citizens expressing fear about the spotlight and backlash around how voting might hurt their application to become citizens.[10]

Discussion

Jamie Raskin, an American law professor and politician, has argued that the blanket exclusion of noncitizens from the ballot is neither constitutionally required nor historically normal. A San Francisco State University political science professor and rights activist, Ron Hayduk, wrote in 2006 a book entitled Democracy For All: Restoring Immigrant Voting Rights in the United States, presenting additional elements of the historical and present reality of noncitizens voting rights in the United States. In 2017 Joe Matthews, called for universal suffrage.[11]

Pre-1926

While initial research showed that 22 states or territories, including colonies before the Declaration of Independence, have at some time given at least some voting rights to non-citizens in some or all elections, more recent and in-depth studies uncovered evidence of 40 states providing suffrage for non-citizens at some point before 1926. For example, in 1875, the Supreme Court in Minor v. Happersett noted that "citizenship has not in all cases been made a condition precedent to the enjoyment of the right of suffrage. Thus, in Missouri, persons of foreign birth, who have declared their intention to become citizens of the United States, may under certain circumstances vote."

By 1900, nearly half of the states and territories had some experience with voting by non-citizens, and for some the experience lasted more than half a century.[12] At the turn of the twentieth century, anti-immigration feeling ran high, and Alabama stopped allowing non-citizens to vote by way of a constitutional change in 1901; Colorado followed suit in 1902, Wisconsin in 1908, and Oregon in 1914.[13] Just as the nationalism unleashed by the War of 1812 helped to reverse the non-citizen suffrage policies inherited from the late eighteenth century, World War I caused a sweeping retreat from the progressive non-citizen suffrage policies of the late nineteenth century.[14] In 1918, Kansas, Nebraska, and South Dakota all changed their constitutions to purge non-citizen suffrage, and Texas ended the practice of noncitizen voting in primary elections by statute. Indiana and Texas joined the trend in 1921, followed by Mississippi in 1924 and, finally, Arkansas in 1926.[15] In 1931, political scientist Leon Aylsworth noted that "[f]or the first time in over a hundred years, a national election was held in 1928 in which no alien in any state had the right to cast a vote for a candidate for any office – national, state, or local."[16]

No citizenship requirement for suffrage

Connecticut

1776–1819

Delaware

1776–1831

Illinois

Kentucky

1789–1799

Maryland

1776–1851

Massachusetts

New Hampshire

1792–1814

New Jersey

1776–1820

New York

1777 New York State Constitution, Article VII: "[E]very male inhabitant of full age, who shall have personally resided within one of the countiesof this State for six months immediately preceding the day of election, shall, at such election, be entitled to vote for representatives of the said county in assembly; if, during the time aforesaid, he shall have been a freeholder, possessing a freehold of the value of twenty pounds, within the said county, or haverented a tenement therein of the yearly value of forty shillings, and been rated and actually paid taxes to this State: Provided always, That every person who now is a freeman of the city of Albany, or who was made a freeman of the city of New York on or before the fourteenth day of October, in the year of ourLord one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five, and shall be actually and usually resident in the said cities, respectively, shall be entitled to vote for representatives in assembly within his said place of residence."[18]

1776–1804

North Carolina

1704–1856

Northwest Territory

1787 Northwest Ordinance (valid until 1803) "Provided, That no person be eligible or qualified to act as a representative unless he shall have been a citizen of one of the United States three years, and be a resident in the district, or unless he shall have resided in the district three years; and, in either case, shall likewise hold in his own right, in fee simple, two hundred acres of land within the same; Provided, also, That a freehold in 50acres of land in the district, having been a citizen of one of the states, and being resident in the district, or the like freehold and two years residence in the district, shall be necessary to qualify a man as an elector of a representative."

Ohio

Pennsylvania

"all free men having a sufficient evident common interest with, and attachment to the community, have a right to elect officers, or to be elected into office"

Rhode Island

1762–1842

South Carolina

1790–?

Tennessee

1796–1834

Vermont

Virginia

Suffrage for those who intend to become citizens

Alabama

Arkansas

Colorado

1876–1902

Florida

Georgia

Idaho

1863–1890

Indiana

Kansas

Louisiana

1879–?

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

Missouri

1865–1921

Montana

1864–1889

Nebraska

1854–1918

Nevada

1848–1864

North Dakota

1889-1889/1909

Oklahoma

1850–1907

Oregon

1848–1914

South Dakota

1850–1918

Texas

Washington

(1853–1889)

Wisconsin

Wyoming

(1850–1889)

American Samoa & the Northern Mariana Islands

See main article: Elections in American Samoa and Elections in the Northern Mariana Islands.

Unlike the United States's other self-governing territories, American Samoa, an unincorporated, unorganized territory of the United States since 1900, has not been given jus soli birthright citizenship either by incorporation or act of Congress for those born in its borders. As a result, people born in American Samoa or any United States Minor Outlying Islands are not given automatic US citizenship but have instead been given US nationality without citizenship.[22] [23] [24]

Residents of the Northern Mariana Islands gained automatic US citizenship via the Covenant with the United States in November 1986, but also have the option (prior to reaching the age of 18) to reject US citizenship and accept non-citizen US nationality instead.[25]

Under American Samoa law and Northern Mariana Islands law, both US citizens and non-citizen nationals may register to vote, making them the only jurisdictions at the state or territorial level that allow non-citizens to vote and making their delegates the only members of Congress voted for by non-citizens (though those members cannot themselves vote in Congress, because territories are not represented there in the Constitution).

21st century

Turnout by non-citizens has been very low (sometimes less than 0.5% of voters) in cities where non-citizen voting is legal only for some local elections, with some non-citizens expressing fear that about the spotlight and backlash and fear around how voting might hurt their application to become citizens.[26]

District of Columbia

See main article: Elections in the District of Columbia.

Non-citizen voting for anyone residing in the District at least 30 days was enacted on February 23, 2023.[27] [28] Non-citizen residents of DC may vote in local matters (such as mayor or referendums) but they may not vote in federal elections (such as US president or DC's house delegate).[29]

Maryland

Maryland ended noncitizen voting rights for state and federal elections in 1851, but its constitution recognizes the autonomy of local municipalities and localities on the subject. Localities with non-citizen voting in local elections include:

Massachusetts

Cambridge approved the right of non-citizens to vote in local elections in 2000.[41]

New York

In New York City, noncitizens who have children in public schools could vote in school board elections until 2002 when school board elections stopped. In 2021, New York City passed a law allowing legal immigrants the right to vote in city and borough elections.[42] This law was struck down as violating the New York State constitution, preventing it from going into effect, but as of June 2022, the city intended to appeal.[43] Previously, bills had been submitted at the New York City Council and at the New York State Assembly in 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2010.[44]

Ohio

The city of Yellow Springs passed a law by referendum in 2019, allowing non-citizens to vote in local elections. This was disallowed by Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose on the grounds that it was unconstitutional.[45] [46] The Ohio constitution was amended in 2022 to specifically exclude non-citizens from voting.[47]

San Francisco (School Board)

In November 2016 voters in San Francisco approved a proposal to allow all parents of children in the San Francisco school system to vote in school board elections regardless of their immigration or citizenship status.[48] Unless extended by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, the proposition is only effective for the school board elections of 2018, 2020, and 2022.[49] Voters rejected similar proposals in 2004 and 2010.[50]

On July 29, 2022, ordinance 206-21, which allowed noncitizens to vote in San Francisco school board elections, was struck down before being upheld in August 2023 along with a similar measure in Oakland.[51]

Critics, such as Florida's Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, have used this proposition to generalize that noncitizens can vote in San Francisco.[52] Former Congressmember Doug Ose has submitted a proposed ballot measure to state officials that would ban voting by those in the U.S. illegally.[53]

Vermont

Montpelier citizens passed a charter change on November 6, 2018 that would afford full voting rights in municipal elections to any legal non-citizens residing in the city.[54] A similar proposal in Winooski passed in 2020.[55] Approval for all localities was granted by the Vermont state legislature in June 2021, overriding the veto of Governor Phil Scott.[56]

Only citizens clause

As of October 10, 2023, seven state constitutions explicitly require citizenship for voting:

References

General references

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 3 different United States (Hooven & Allison vs Evatt).
  2. Book: Black's Law 6th . 1533.
  3. Xenophobia, Belonging and Agency: Citizenship in Immigrant America. By: Hayduk, Ron, García-Castañon, Marcela, New Political Science, 07393148, Jun2018, Vol. 40, Issue 2
  4. Thompson, Simon . December 3, 2010 . Voting Rights: Earned or Entitled? . Harvard Political Review.
  5. Web site: 18 U.S.C. § 611. - Voting by Aliens . United States Congress . October 24, 2014.
  6. Web site: 8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(10)(D) – Inadmissible aliens . Legal Information Institute . Cornell University Law School. 2016-04-25.
  7. Web site: 8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(6) – Deportable aliens . Legal Information Institute . Cornell University Law School. 2016-04-25.
  8. https://aselectionoffice.gov/node/3 American Samoa Government – Election Office: Registration Requirements
  9. https://sablan.house.gov/register-vote Register to Vote in the Northern Mariana Islands
  10. News: Lefrak . Mikaela . May 4, 2024 . Some cities allow noncitizens to vote in local elections. Their turnout is quite low . NPR.
  11. News: Matthews . Joe . August 4, 2017 . Opinion: You heard me, California: Give noncitizens the right to vote . . U.S. Supreme Court precedent is unchanged; states can let noncitizens vote if they choose. While Congress explicitly outlawed noncitizen voting in federal elections, the door remains open for local and state elections. ... And if America is going to call itself a democracy, the country ought to have one state that is an actual democracy..
  12. , citing
  13. , citing
  14. , citing
  15. , citing
  16. , citing
  17. the entry Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (1780) on Wikisource is not the original 1780 text but the present-day amended text; for the original 1780 constitution, see:
  18. https://history.nycourts.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Publications_1777-NY-Constitution-compressed.pdf Constitution of New York – 1777.
  19. Web site: Constitution of Ohio . Wikisource.
  20. Aylsworth . Leon E. . 1931 . The Passing of Alien Suffrage . American Political Science Review . en . 25 . 1 . 114–116 . 10.2307/1946574 . 1946574 . 145134922 . 0003-0554.
  21. Web site: Office of the State Of Minnesota Secretary of State . www.sos.state.mn.us.
  22. https://www.doi.gov/oia/islands/american-samoa US Department of the Interior: American Samoa
  23. Web site: Ray . Levy-Uydeda . Mic.com . Why some U.S. citizens won't get to vote for president because of where they live . March 3, 2020.
  24. Web site: 8 FAM 302.1 Historical Background to Acquisition by Birth in U.S. Territories and Possessions . U.S. Department of State. 2020-06-09.
  25. Web site: 8 FAM 308.3 Non-Citizen U.S. Nationality in The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands . U.S. Department of State . 2020-06-09.
  26. News: Lefrak . Mikaela . May 4, 2024 . Some cities allow noncitizens to vote in local elections. Their turnout is quite low . NPR.
  27. Web site: DC Legislation Information Management System .
  28. Web site: Washington DC City Council says bill for allowing noncitizens to vote is now law: Report . . February 27, 2023 .
  29. News: Non-citizens will be able to vote in DC starting next year. Abigail. Hatting. April 26, 2023. The Eagle. American University.
  30. https://www.barnesvillemd.org/town-charter Barnesville Town Charter
  31. https://www.chevychasesection3.org/governance/pages/about-village-council Chevy Chase Section 3 – About the Village Council
  32. https://www.garrettparkmd.gov/government/elections-and-voter-registration/voter-registration Town of Garrett Park – Voter Registration
  33. https://glenecho.org/election/ Town of Glen Echo – Town Election
  34. https://www.hyattsville.org/841/Elections Hyattsville, MD – Elections
  35. News: Hyattsville will allow non-U.S. citizens to vote in city elections – The Washington Post . The Washington Post.
  36. https://martinsadditions.org/governance/village_council_elections/index.php Village of Martin's Additions – Village Council Election Process
  37. https://www.mountrainiermd.org/government/city-elections City of Mount Rainier – City Elections
  38. Web site: Mt. Rainier extends vote to non-citizens.
  39. http://townofsomerset.com/Faq.aspx?QID=149 Town of Somerset – Who can vote in Town Elections?
  40. https://takomaparkmd.gov/register-to-vote/ City of Takoma Park – Register to Vote
  41. Web site: Kim . Sumi A. . November 8, 2000 . Cambridge City Council Gives Voting Rights to Immigrants News The Harvard Crimson . 2024-05-05 . www.thecrimson.com.
  42. News: New York City becomes the largest municipality in the U.S. to allow noncitizens to vote in local elections . Maria Sacchetti . . December 9, 2021.
  43. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/27/nyregion/noncitizen-voting-ruling-nyc.html New York City’s Noncitizen Voting Law Is Struck Down
  44. Web site: Immigrant Voting Project --Democracy for All. https://web.archive.org/web/20120209131552/http://www.immigrantvoting.org/statescurrent/newyork.html . February 9, 2012 . March 5, 2016.
  45. Web site: Ohio Issue 2, Citizenship Voting Requirement Amendment (2022) . 2023-03-24 . Ballotpedia . en.
  46. Web site: Carey . Tyler . DeNatale . Dave . 2022-06-01 . Ohio constitutional amendment that would prevent non-citizens from voting in local elections heads to November ballot . 2023-03-24 . wkyc.com . en-US.
  47. Web site: October 31, 2022 . Ohioans pass Issue 2, preventing non-US citizens from voting in local elections . 2023-03-24 . WKYC . en-US.
  48. Text of the proposal is here and election results are here – scroll down to Local Measure N – Non-Citizen Voting in School Board Elections.
  49. News: Lin II . Rong-Gong . November 9, 2016 . San Francisco measure to allow noncitizen parents to vote in school board elections leading . Los Angeles Times.
  50. http://www.immigrantvoting.org/statescurrent/california.html Immigrant Voting Rights in California
  51. News: Egelko . Bob . October 10, 2023 . Conservative group drops challenge to SF, Oakland laws allowing noncitizen voting in school board races . San Francisco Chronicle.
  52. Web site: Valverde . Miriam . September 15, 2017 . Can noncitizens vote in San Francisco, Takoma Park elections? . politifact.
  53. News: Myers . John . Former GOP congressman wants an official ban on 'noncitizens' voting in California . Los Angeles Times.
  54. News: November 8, 2018 . Montpelier Approves Non-Citizen Voting in Local Elections . 2023-03-24 . U.S. News & World Report . Associated Press.
  55. Web site: Amanda . Gokee . 2020-11-03 . Winooski approves noncitizen voting . 2020-11-04 . VTDigger . en-US.
  56. Web site: Landen . Xander . Norton . Kit . 2021-06-24 . Vermont Senate overrides vetoes of noncitizen voting measures, approves housing bill . 2023-03-24 . VTDigger . en-US.
  57. Web site: Alabama Amendment 1, Citizenship Requirement for Voting Measure (2020) .
  58. https://ballotpedia.org/Article_7,_Arizona_Constitution Arizona Constitution, Article 7, Section 2, Paragraph A.
  59. Web site: Colorado Amendment 76, Citizenship Requirement for Voting Initiative (2020) .
  60. Web site: Florida Amendment 1, Citizen Requirement for Voting Initiative (2020) .
  61. Web site: Louisiana Amendment 1, Citizen Requirement for Voting Measure (December 2022) . 2023-01-14 . Ballotpedia . en.
  62. Web site: North Dakota Measure 2, Citizen Requirement for Voting Amendment Initiative (2018) .
  63. Web site: Ohio Issue 2, Citizenship Voting Requirement Amendment (2022) .