New Bill Bars Non-Americans From Voting in Kentucky

If the bill passes the House and Senate, the issue of noncitizen voting will be on Kentucky’s ballots in November.

Voters use an 'optional paper ballot voting booth' to cast their ballots early before the May 3 primary at the Franklin County Board of Elections on April 26, 2022 in Columbus, Ohio. Drew Angerer/Getty Images

A new bill introduced in Kentucky seeks to restrict voting rights to only people who are U.S. citizens, which Republicans say is necessary to ensure election integrity.

House Bill 341 was introduced in the Kentucky House of Representatives on Jan. 22. It proposes amending sections 145 and 155 of Kentucky’s Constitution to “prohibit persons who are not citizens of the United States from being allowed to vote in the Commonwealth of Kentucky.” HB 341 was introduced by state Rep. Michael Meredith (R-Ky.).

“This bill marks a crucial milestone in ensuring the integrity of our elections,” he said in a statement. “If HB341 receives a 2/3rds majority ‘yes’ vote in the House and Senate, it will be presented on the ballot in November 2024 for Kentucky citizens to have their say,”

Rep. Killian Timoney (R-Ky.) noted that being a representative from Kentucky, he “firmly” believes in “preserving the integrity of our democratic process.”

“Allowing only U.S. citizens to vote ensures that the voices heard in our elections truly reflect the interests and values of our community. It is a fundamental principle of our democracy to prioritize the rights and responsibilities of citizens, safeguarding the foundation upon which our great state stands.”

During a hearing of the Kentucky House Standing Committee on Elections, Constitutional Amendments, and Government Affairs held on Jan. 25, Mr. Meredith justified the bill and explained its reasoning when another lawmaker raised concerns.

“I think the intent was for just citizens to vote,” he said, according to the West Virginia Record. “This has been tested in other cities. New York, California, and Maryland have allowed (non-citizens to vote) in school elections. They have held up. The language says allow citizens but does not specifically state non-citizens cannot.”

He also pointed out that the cost to add the issue to Kentucky’s ballots in November would be “minimal to the state.”

Mr. Meredith’s bill is the latest among similar measures that various states have introduced recently on citizenship voting rights.

On Jan. 22, Sen. Craig Blair (R-W.Va.) introduced a resolution to amend the West Virginia Constitution to limit voting rights to American citizens.

In an interview with the outlet, state Sen. Mike Stuart (R-W.Va.), a co-sponsor of the bill, pointed to the immigrant influx under the Biden administration as a reason why citizenship voting restriction is necessary.

“Voting should be exclusively the fundamental right of actual citizens of the United States … The failure of the Biden Administration to secure the southern border has caused an illegal invasion of the nation.”

“While I support legal immigration, no one likes line skippers at Disney World or the border. Legal citizens who are here pursuant to our laws should have the right to vote—no one else,” he said. “As an American citizen, I don’t vote in other countries’ elections, and they shouldn’t vote in ours.”

In Virginia, legislation has been introduced that would require state residents to prove U.S. citizenship in order to register to vote. Acceptable proof includes a passport, birth certificate, or naturalization documents.

Democrat Agenda

In a Jan. 3 commentary at The Epoch Times, Newt Gingrich, an author and former Georgia congressman who was the 50th Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, highlighted the Democrat attempt to get as many illegal aliens into America and make it possible for such noncitizens to vote in elections.

“President Joe Biden let millions of illegal immigrants cross the border. Then he bussed them to Washington. The city’s Democratic machine now wants to let them vote—knowing they'll almost certainly vote Democrat for all the support and assistance,” he wrote.

“This policy is a clear threat to American nationalism … In effect, the noncitizens would offset Americans with whom the left doesn’t agree.”

As part of promoting noncitizen voting, the left will call attempts to prevent it “racist,” Mr. Gingrich warned. He called on Congress to quickly move to block Washington politicians’ efforts to allow noncitizen voting in the capital.

In Santa Ana, California, a proposal to allow noncitizens to vote in local elections will be put up before voters this year.

In Maryland, noncitizens are allowed to vote in local elections in 11 cities. In Vermont, three cities allow noncitizen voting. In 2022, voters in Oakland, California, allowed noncitizen voting for local races.

During a press conference last month, Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.) announced receiving a copy of an agreement between the New York City Department of Social Services and the nonprofit Homes for the Homeless that has been contracted to set up emergency migrant shelters.

The agreement appeared to require contractors to provide voter registration forms to migrants, according to Fox.

“This is the smoking gun that proves what we’ve been saying all along, that the city intends to register noncitizens to vote, and even those who are residing in these migrant shelters for just 30 days,” she said during the conference. “It is extremely concerning. It should be concerning to every citizen.”

A spokesperson for the NYC Department of Social Services called the allegations “baseless.”

“DHS is legally required to include language around voter registration in shelter contracts, and this guidance applies only to eligible clients who are citizens and would clearly not apply to asylum seekers in shelter,” the spokesperson told the outlet.

Back in 2021, the New York City Council passed a law allowing noncitizens to vote in local elections. Several lawmakers, including Ms. Malliotakis, sued the city. In July 2022, a state judge overturned the law.