Sen. Cruz Introduces Bill to Help Block Non-Citizens From Voting in Washington D.C.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), introduced a bill this week to help prevent non-citizens, including illegal aliens and embassy staff from other countries, from voting in local elections in the nation’s capital. Originally introduced last Congress, this bill would prohibit the Washington, D.C. city government from using federal funds to facilitate non-citizen voting in elections in our nation’s capital.
This legislation is being led in the House of Representatives by Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) and is co-sponsored by Sens. John N. Kennedy (R-La.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) and Rick Scott (R-Fla.).
Sen. Cruz’s bill is in response to the D.C. Council’s recently passed measure that would allow non-citizens – including illegal aliens – to vote in local elections. Sen. Cruz also plans to introduce a Congressional Review Act resolution to overturn this measure.
About this bill, Sen. Cruz said:
“Allowing non-citizens, including aliens occupying our nation illegally, to exercise a right reserved for American citizens not only violates the constitutional principles our nation was founded upon, but also naively invites foreign meddling in our elections. Voting is a privilege and the tool by which American citizens exercise their say in who leads our country, how we spend our tax dollars, and what policies should be instituted. I am vehemently against unconstitutionally cheapening the votes of American citizens and ignoring the rule of law in this nation.”
Sen. Kennedy said:
“No one earns the right to vote in American elections by entering and living in our country illegally. Congress has an obligation to uphold our Constitution, safeguard our elections and stop renegade policies like these from nullifying the vote and voice of American citizens.”
Support for this bill:
RJ Hauman, head of government relations and communications at the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR):
"Two and a half centuries ago, our nation was founded on the principle that sovereign people should determine their own destinies. Last year, the city council of our Nation’s capital fundamentally violated that founding principle in an effort to empower noncitizens – including illegal aliens and employees at embassies of governments that are openly hostile to the United States – to determine the outcome of local elections. The right to vote is at the very core of the principle of self-determination and what it means to be a citizen. The actions of the D.C. city government are the next and most damaging steps in an ongoing effort to erase any distinction between American citizens and noncitizens. We applaud Senator Cruz for stepping up to the plate in an effort to pre-emptively address this radical measure.”
Rosemary Jenks, Director of Government Relations, NumbersUSA:
“The D.C. Council’s move to allow noncitizens to vote in D.C. elections defies both common sense and good governance. Beyond the absurdity of the leaders in Washington, D.C. begging for Federal assistance with their recent ‘surge’ of 8,200 illegal aliens while simultaneously offering them the right to vote if they come, it is totally unconscionable that the district that serves as the seat of our Federal government would actively work to dilute the votes of American citizens with the votes of all resident foreign nationals, including the embassy staff who live and work in D.C. on behalf of governments like Russia and China. We applaud Senator Cruz for working to stop this absurd policy and protect the voting rights of all Americans in the District of Columbia.”
Read this bill here.
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