Noncitizens allowed to vote in certain Washington, DC elections
Fox News senior congressional correspondent reports on the District of Columbia voting eligibility rules on Special Report.
FIRST ON FOX: A Republican senator is introducing legislation that would require Washington, D.C., residents who vote in local elections to be U.S. citizens -- pushing back against controversial legislation passed in the city nearly two years ago.
Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., is introducing the "Demanding Citizenship in DC Elections Act." The bill would require any individual who votes in a municipal election to be a U.S. citizen and to also provide proof of citizenship, according to an advanced copy that was shared first with Fox News Digital.
The Local Resident Voting Rights Act, passed by the D.C. Council in October 2022, states that if a noncitizen is otherwise qualified to vote, they can do so in local elections so long as they have resided in Washington, D.C., for at least 30 days. It also permits noncitizen residents to run for Washington, D.C., government offices and serve on the city's Board of Elections, according to court documents. However, it would not allow illegal immigrants to vote.
WASHINGTON DC ALLOWING NONCITIZENS TO VOTE IN ELECTIONS CHALLENGED BY LAWSUIT
The Washington, D.C., City Council has approved a bill that would allow illegal immigrants to vote in local elections. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
The law sparked outrage and an unsuccessful effort in Congress to overturn it. One legal group sued to overturn it, but that effort was struck down this year. While Washington, D.C., has home rule authority and can pass laws without federal consent, Congress has the authority to strike down Washington, D.C., laws it disapproves of.
Marshall saw the push to allow noncitizens to vote in the context of the ongoing migrant crisis at the southern border, which Republicans have blamed on the policies of the Biden administration. In a statement, Marshall accused the federal government of having threatened U.S. sovereignty with the crisis and accused Democrats of attempting a "takeover" of elections that "undermines our Democracy."
LEGAL IMMIGRANTS INFURIATED BY ‘NEFARIOUS’ DC PLAN TO LET ILLEGAL MIGRANTS VOTE
"This is election interference by design, with the ultimate goal being the unraveling of our free and fair elections by engineering the largest-scale invasion of our country and turning them out at the ballot box to perpetually 'cook the books' for Democrats," he said, before claiming illegal immigrants are already being seen as Democratic voters.
"We the people must fight back; too much is at stake," he said. Our Democracy as we know is under attack by this administration, and while this legislation is a great first step, much more needs to be done."
CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF THE BORDER SECURITY CRISIS
Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) has introduced the legislation. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
New York City had passed a similar bill on noncitizen voting in December 2021. That bill quickly faced a legal challenge, and in June, a New York judge ruled that it was illegal, violating the state's constitution.
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On a national level, meanwhile, there have been multiple attempts by Republicans to place a citizenship question on the census.
Fox News' Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
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