Fox’s first appearance: A Republican senator is introducing a bill that would require D.C. residents to be U.S. citizens to vote in local elections, opposing a controversial bill passed in the city nearly two years ago.
Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kansas) is introducing the D.C. Elections Civil Rights Requirement Act. The bill would require all individuals voting in local elections to be U.S. citizens and provide proof of citizenship, according to an advance copy first shared with Fox News Digital.
The Local Voting Rights Act, passed by the D.C. Council in October 2022, states that noncitizens who are eligible to vote can vote in local elections as long as they live there. Washington DC, For at least 30 days. Noncitizen residents are also allowed to run for government offices in Washington, D.C., and serve on the city’s election board, according to court documents. However, illegal immigrants will not be allowed to vote.
Washington DC allows non-citizens to vote in contested election
The Washington, D.C. City Council has approved a bill that would allow illegal immigrants to vote in local elections. (Joe Radle/Getty Images)
The law caused outrage, and efforts to overturn it in Congress failed. A legal group filed a lawsuit to overturn it, but that effort was defeated this year. Washington, DC has autonomy and can enact laws without the consent of the federal government, but Congress has the power to repeal laws that Washington, DC does not approve.
Marshall saw the push to allow noncitizens to vote against the backdrop of the ongoing immigration crisis at the southern border, which Republicans blame on the Biden administration’s policies. In his statement, Marshall accused the federal government of threatening U.S. sovereignty in the crisis and accused Democrats of attempting to “hijack” an election that “undermines our democracy.”
Legal immigrants outraged by ‘diabolical’ D.C. plan to allow illegal immigrants to vote
“This is deliberate election interference, with the ultimate goal of orchestrating the largest invasion of our country and getting people to vote in order to permanently ‘cook the books’ for the Democratic Party. “It’s about destroying free and fair elections,” he said before claiming that illegal immigrants are already considered Democratic voters.
“We, the people, must fight back. Too much is at stake,” he said. As we know, our democracy is under attack by this administration, and while this bill is a great first step, much more needs to be done. ”
For more information on the border security crisis, click here
Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kansas) introduced the bill. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
new york city The state passed a similar bill regarding non-citizen voting in December 2021. The bill soon faced legal challenges, and in June a New York state judge ruled that the bill violated the state constitution and was illegal.
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Meanwhile, at the national level, there have been multiple attempts by Republicans to include a citizenship question on the census.
FOX News’ Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
