Republican senator Ted Cruz of Texas found himself embroiled in a dispute with a former U.S. attorney when he supported Republican Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama’s bill by saying “illegal aliens” could vote in federal elections American.
On the social media app TwitterCruz responded to a tweet from the right-wing news site Daily Caller, linking to an article about Britt’s proposed framework to “prevent non-citizens from voting in federal elections.”
“Illegal aliens should not be able to vote in federal elections,” Cruz said. “Period. This shouldn’t be controversial.”
Joy Vance, the former U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Alabama appointed by the president Barack Obamasaid the legislation, along with the tweet, was “another example of the GOP inventing a false issue and focusing people on it instead of real issues like gun violence or climate change.”
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Vance added that the question was irrelevant because Britt’s proposal already had the force of law: “People who are not citizens can’t vote,” Vance said. “There is no need for the senator from Alabama to introduce a bill because it is already the law.”
Cruz responded, “Completely false. Receipts: » and showed two photos of articles discussing legislation passed giving non-U.S. citizens the right to vote in local elections. The first was a December 2021 ABC-7 article titled New York City Council passes bill giving non-citizens the right to vote. He was referring to a bill passed by the New York City Council that allowed “individuals who have lived in the city for at least 30 days and who are lawful permanent residents of the United States” to vote in municipal elections.
The second article came from Fox News this year and spoke about the Local Resident Voting Rights Amendment Act passed by the District of Columbia Council, also regarding local elections.
The two articles that Cruz mentioned focused on local elections, not the federal elections he was originally referring to. The U.S. government website states that “some areas allow noncitizens to vote only in local elections.”
A community note appeared on Cruz first tweet on the issue, confirming that “only US citizens can vote in federal elections”, and the US government website says this is the case.
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People who cannot vote are: “Noncitizens, including permanent legal residents, cannot vote in federal, state, and most local elections. »
‘Once again, the ‘fact-checkers’ are wrong,’ Cruz’s office says News week Friday. “While it is true that illegal aliens are not allowed to vote in federal elections, states are not allowed to verify anyone’s citizenship status when they register to vote. Supreme Court erroneously concluded that the National Voter Registration Act prohibits states from verifying a person’s citizenship when they register to vote.
“While New York and DC currently register illegal aliens to vote, there is a high likelihood that aliens will vote in federal elections. This bill would change that and allow states to verify people’s citizenship status when they register to vote. Perhaps the keyboard warriors who wrote this community note should read the bill first.
There could be room for maneuver the likes of Cruz and Britt to focus specifically on barring non-U.S. citizens from voting in local elections.
A statement from Britt said: “Voting in our country is a sacred right that should be limited only to American citizens. Allowing States to respect this principle should be simple common sense. We are seeing some cities across our country begin to openly allow non-citizens to vote. vote in local elections. »
Britt also said this “effectively disenfranchises hard-working American citizens, insults American citizens who came to our country legally and took the time and effort to go through the citizenship process, and undermines confidence in our entire electoral system.
Supporters of allowing non-U.S. citizens to vote in elections say it is about “extending the right to vote” to people who care about their communities.
District of Columbia Council Member Charles Allen spoke to Fox News for the article Cruz referenced. He said, “This bill is consistent with our D.C. values and this Council’s history of expanding voting rights and welcoming new voices into our political process and government. Our immigrant neighbors of all statuses participate, contribute and care about our community in our city.”
Cities like Washington, D.C., invite non-citizens to vote in elections, Cruz said News week Friday.
“As the Washington Post noted, it’s a terrible idea that creates “logistical nightmares” for election officials, who must now create separate ballots for non-citizens, to ensure they don’t vote in federal elections .
“Moreover, the Job We have noted that this invites very real foreign influence in our local elections. What my bill with Senator Britt would do is ensure that our federal elections are protected from foreign influence. Maybe Democrats I do not agree with this proposition.”
Updated 12/15/23, 3:05 p.m. ET: This story has been updated with comments from Cruz’s office and Cruz.
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