Should non-citizens be allowed to vote? A number of cities allow it in local elections

WASHINGTON (TND) — Voting in elections has been a hallmark of American citizenship since the country's founding. Now, some are pushing to expand that right.

Rep.David Trone, the Democratic frontrunner in what’s shaping up to be a tight Senate race in Maryland, is the latest to argue citizenship and voting rights should extend to the millions of migrants who entered the United States illegally.

While only U.S. citizens can vote in federal elections, a growing number of state and local elections allow non-citizens to vote.

Last year, Washington D.C. joined the ranks of San Francisco and Oakland, California along with a handful of cities in Maryland and Vermont to allow noncitizens to vote in local elections.

In February, a state appeals court ruled a New York City law allowing non-citizens to vote in local races violates the state constitution.

"It is unconstitutional only United States citizens should vote and they need to stop trying to strip away the voices of our American citizens and diluting them with policies like this," said Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y.

Some on the Left like California Congressman Jim Costa say noncitizen voting is a step too far.

“I don’t think that non-citizens should be given that right," Costa said on Wednesday. "Citizenship gives certain rights as Americans and one of those rights is the right to vote but I think that comes part with citizenship.”

Immigration continues to surge in polls as a top issue for voters and in the 2024 presidential race. Donald Trump is now working the non-citizen voting issue into his campaign criticisms of President Biden.