Noncitizens Voting?

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/rnc-sues-eric-adams-and-nyc-election-officials/ar-AASDzKO?ocid=uxbndlbing

The Republican National Committee is launching a suit against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, the city council and the city board of elections over a new policy allowing around up to 900,000 noncitizens to vote in municipal elections.

The RNC is filing suit together with the New York GOP and state and local office holders, including city council members who voted against the legislation.

‘American elections should be decided by American citizens. If Democrats can subvert elections this flagrantly in America’s largest city, they can do it anywhere,’ RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said in a statement provided to DailyMail.com.

‘The RNC is suing to protect the integrity of our elections, and we stand ready to do the same wherever Democrats try to attack the basic security of your ballot.’

Our City Our Vote, a campaign that pushed for non-citizen suffrage, estimated that the new bill would add around 900,000 to the city’s voter rolls.

The New York City Board of Elections would be responsible for the new voters’ registration, and would need to produce different ballots for non-citizen voters.

The New York City Council passed the law last month, and the city’s new mayor allowed the bill to automatically become law on Sunday.

Unless a judge halts its implementation, New York City will be the first major U.S. city to grant widespread municipal voting rights to non-citizens beginning next year.

More than a dozen communities across the U.S. already allow non-citizens to cast ballots in local elections, including 11 towns in Maryland and two in Vermont.

Texas GOP Rep. Dan Crenshaw condemned the new law on Twitter.

‘Foreigners shouldn’t be voting in American elections. You prove your loyalty to our country by becoming a citizen. Then you vote. How is this even up for debate?’ he wrote.

Adams defended himself Sunday against criticism from members of his own party claiming that he did not support the legislation.

‘No, I did not change my mind,’ Adams told CNN’s Jake Tapper on the State of the Union program. ‘I supported the concept of the bill.’

‘The one aspect of that I had a problem with and I thought was problematic, was the 30-day part, of being in the country for 30 days, was the place that I had questions,’ he clarified. ‘And I sat down with my colleagues. I’m a big believer in conversation. We have to start talking to each other, and not at each other. And after hearing their rationale and their theories behind it, I thought it was more important to not veto the bill or get in the way at all, and allow to build a move forward.’

‘In New York City, just Brooklyn, for example – 47 per cent of Brooklynites speak a language other than English at home when I was the borough president,’ the new Democratic mayor said. ‘And so I think it’s imperative that people who are in a local municipality have the right to decide who’s going to govern them. And I support the overall concept of that bill.’

Under the new law, non-citizens still wouldn’t be able to vote for president or members of Congress in federal races, or in the state elections that pick the governor, judges and legislators.

Rather, the measure would allow non-citizens who have been lawful permanent residents of the city for at least 30 days, as well as those authorized to work in the U.S., including ‘Dreamers,’ to help select the city’s mayor, city council members, borough presidents, comptroller and public advocate.

Critics say the law could discourage legal residents from pursuing U.S. citizenship.

With Adams’ decision to not veto and allow the bill to become law, the Board of Elections must now begin the process of drawing an implementation plan by July, including voter registration rules and provisions that would create separate ballots for municipal races to prevent non-citizens from casting ballots in federal and state contests.

It’s a watershed moment for the nation’s most populous city, where legally documented, voting-age non-citizens comprise nearly one in nine of the city’s 7 million voting-age inhabitants. The movement to win voting rights for non-citizens prevailed after numerous setbacks.

‘Dreamers’ are young immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as children who would benefit from the never-passed DREAM Act or the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which allows them to remain in the country if they meet certain criteria.

The first elections in which non-citizens would be allowed to vote are in 2023.

‘We build a stronger democracy when we include the voices of immigrants,’ said former City Council member Ydanis Rodriguez, who led the charge to win approval for the legislation.

Rodriguez, who Adams appointed as his transportation commissioner, thanked the mayor for his support and expects a vigorous defense against any legal challenges.

Adams recently cast uncertainty over the legislation when he raised concern about the monthlong residency standard, but later said those concerns did not mean he would veto the bill.

While there was some question whether Adams could stop the bill from becoming law, the 30-day time limit for the mayor to take action expired at the stroke of midnight.

Adams said he looked forward to the law bringing millions more into the democratic process.

‘I believe that New Yorkers should have a say in their government, which is why I have and will continue to support this important legislation,’ Adams said in a statement released Saturday night. He added that his earlier concerns were put at ease after what he called productive dialogue with colleagues.

Former Mayor Bill de Blasio had similar concerns but did not move to veto the measure before vacating City Hall at the end of the year.

Opponents say the council lacks the authority on its own to grant voting rights to non-citizens and should have first sought action by state lawmakers.

Some states, including Alabama, Arizona, Colorado and Florida, have adopted rules that would preempt any attempts to pass laws like the one in New York City.