A new law debuting Tuesday that grants voting rights in Washington, D.C., to illegal immigrants and even foreign diplomats is already facing a move to kill it before the next election.
Viewed as a possible trendsetter for other liberal cities, a lawsuit from the Immigration Reform Law Institute said the law violates a Supreme Court ruling that states voting is “reserved” for U.S. citizens.
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“This law and others like it that are popping up around the country is a direct attack on American self-government,” said Christopher Hajec, director of litigation at the Immigration Reform Law Institute.
The Washington-based group said it filed the legal challenge Tuesday, dismissing arguments from proponents that the new voting law simply fulfills their right to free speech.
“The proponents of this law claim it gives citizens of foreign nations a ‘voice’ in the affairs of the city they reside in. But they already have a voice, protected by the First Amendment. They are free to speak, write, attend council meetings, and so on. This law doesn’t just give foreign citizens a voice in our country’s affairs, it gives them voting power that politicians inevitably will have to respond to,” Hajec said.
Several pro-immigrant cities and states have approved voting by illegal immigrants, or are planning to. Other states, notably Texas, are looking to block voting statewide by noncitizens. House Republicans have also targeted the new law.
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The lawsuit claims that letting noncitizens vote dilutes the vote of citizens and is not allowed by the Constitution.
“The sovereign of this democratic nation is the people, U.S. citizens,” said Dale Wilcox, executive director and general counsel of the Immigration Reform Law Institute. “When their power is eroded, our nation begins to lose its independence. And that erosion will escalate. If laws like this are not struck down, next there will be calls in many states to allow aliens to vote in statewide and even federal elections. We hope the court sees how at variance with the Constitution this law is and strikes it down to protect our American democracy.”
