House Bill to Ban Noncitizen Voting in D.C. Election Passes

Once again targeting the nation's capital through legislation, the House on Thursday approved a bill that aims to prohibit non-citizens of the United States from voting in local elections in Washington. Passed 262-143, the four-page bill would prohibit noncitizens from casting ballots in municipal elections or on initiatives and referendums. Voting in any federal election is forbidden for noncitizens, per federal law.

A 2022 ordinance extending the definition of a qualified elector for local elections to include eligible noncitizen residents was approved by the D.C. Council. A federal court dismissed a case against the city's Board of Elections, which was brought by seven voters in Washington, D.C., in March, citing the plaintiffs' inability to prove their harm as a result of the policy.

This week, Republicans relentlessly criticized the local ordinance, claiming that noncitizens have no right to participate in decision-making about the nation's capital. The mayor and the local attorney general will be chosen by noncitizens and international actors, according to the municipal council's decision.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) stated during a press conference on Wednesday that "Congress will not support such criminal behavior as the body in charge of regulating DC." The GOP-led bill has been attacked by Democrats, who are led by Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D.C.), who dubbed it "paternalistic" and "undemocratic."

In remarks made on the House floor, Norton said, "D.C. people, a majority of whom are black and brown, are worthy and capable of self-government." "I ask members to cast no votes." Just 32 noncitizens were registered to vote in the D.C. local elections, according to a report earlier this year by the now-defunct publication DCist.

Republicans and a few Democrats had previously voiced their opposition to the D.C. council bill in February; 42 Democrats voted in favor of a resolution that severely criticized the local statute along with every Republican. In addition, despite existing law forbidding noncitizens from voting in federal elections, the D.C. statute is the target of an attempt to be overturned in tandem with another GOP piece of legislation. In municipal elections, just sixteen cities and towns permit noncitizens to cast ballots, although at least six states have passed legislation restricting localities' ability to do so.

According to reports, the number of votes cast by non-citizens in local elections is still quite small. According to Stateline reporting, just 86 noncitizens cast ballots in local elections held in Vermont in March, while 31 did so in a San Francisco election in 2020. According to the most recent data, almost 20% of the 347 noncitizens who registered to vote in the most recent elections in Takoma Park, Maryland—a city that has permitted noncitizen voting for more than 30 years—have cast ballots.

However, the states are allowed to determine the date, location, and format of elections under the constitution, which exempts all laws—aside from D.C.—from congressional review.The 50-year-old Home Rule Act allows Congress to challenge legislation made in Washington, D.C. The bill's passing represents the most recent Republican rebuke of D.C. legislation. President Biden vetoed a police accountability measure last year after Congress stopped it, citing significant reforms to the department of law enforcement. The law was enacted by the D.C. counsel.

Prior to that, Biden, who had earlier declared his opposition to the crime bill in D.C., signed a resolution to repeal it.

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