“Restore Voting Rights”?

Yesterday, while stopped at a light in traffic, I noticed a back window sticker on a near-by car which said: “Restore Voting Rights.”  Well-meaning on the part of that driver, I’m sure, because right below it was also posted a nice American flag decal. Despite the positive intent, that admonition wasn’t what is really needed right now, as we approach an especially critical national election. The more accurate and clear message would slightly rearrange the words to say, instead: “Restore Rightful Voting.” That’s what’s truly required, meaning restore and maintain the voting right to only legal U.S. citizens, those with government-issued legal ID, and eliminate the active liberal effort to permit voting, in our elections, without proper identification, or by illegal migrants and other non-citizens, even though the latter may be here legally.

In a limited (to date) number of cities, efforts have been made to permit non-citizen voting in local elections. In states that do permit illegal migrants, and legitimate non-citizen foreign nationals, to obtain drivers’ licenses, and by so doing, in some jurisdictions therein, recipients become automatically registered to vote.  A very recent example of using drivers’ license rolls to encourage voter registration, was when Colorado’s Secretary of State’s Office (Democrat) ‘accidently’ sent reminder postcards to 30,000 state resident “foreign nationals,” urging them to register to vote!  The mailing went out to far more yet-to-be-voter recipients (the remainder were citizens), all having a Colorado drivers’ license.  But, as it turned out, as indicated, thirty-thousand of those receiving the mailing, all apparently with state licenses, were non-citizens!  Officials determined that the ‘error’ resulted from a “technology (computer) glitch.” Reportedly, efforts are underway to make certain that none of the non-citizen recipients are actually permitted to register to vote.  Hopefully, they are serious about, and successful with, that corrective effort.

But a serious question does remain in those situations where the drivers’ license is automatically linked to voter registration. With regard to certain cities that now permit non-citizens to vote, but only in local elections, if those “foreign nationals” are then “legally” registered to vote locally, how do politically ‘neutral’ election officials really prevent them from voting in state and national office elections?  And especially so in Democrat dominated jurisdictions, where such blind-eye, lack of close supervision (think 2020), is known to have occurred.  That’s at least one problem associated with issuing drivers’ licenses to non-citizens, most of whom, with adequate English language proficiency and safe driving capability, would be understood, permissible, and needed for work and other transportation. But, in general, this is an on-going issue: Linking drivers’ license rolls to automatic voter registration.

Meanwhile in Florida, in many ways becoming a beacon for the nation, in the election two years ago, citizen residents were asked to vote on the following state-wide initiative: “To amend the Florida Constitution to state that only a citizen on the U.S. who is 18 years old or older can vote in Florida.”  Required for approval was a 60% super-majority of votes cast.  Bettering that requirement, 79.29% of Florida voters approved that state-wide amendment!  Also on election day, 2020, along with Florida, voters in Alabama and Colorado approved ballot measures mandating that only citizens (18+) can vote.  North Dakota and Arizona citizens passed a similar citizens-only measure before the 2020 election.

San Francisco permits residents, who are non-citizens, to vote in school board elections “if the voter is a parent or legal guardian of a child in the school system.” Eleven states permit non–residents (citizens, but living outside the jurisdiction) to vote in local and special district elections. Interestingly, overall California state law prohibits noncitizen voting!

In New York City, after previous attempts, in early January of this year (2002), the City Council passed a measure and the NYC Mayor “allowed a bill to become law that would grant more than 800,000 noncitizens the right to vote in municipal elections.” Said the Mayor: “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.”  Local voting rights then granted to all city residents, regardless of U.S. citizenship. However, this decision was challenged, and several months later, was overruled by a New York State Supreme Court justice (Staten Island). “Justice Ralph J. Porzio ruled that the new law conflicted with constitutional guidelines and state law stating that only eligible citizens can vote.  To give noncitizens a right to vote would require a referendum, the judge wrote.”

Summing up, overall, voting in the U.S., especially in national elections, is restricted to American citizens.  Local jurisdictional voting requirements vary from state to state, and in the case of San Francisco, would seem to be in conflict with state law.  Unverified, but Los Angeles may, by now, have a local ruling in place allowing the local vote of noncitizens?  Regardless, voting is a sacred and fundamental right granted to all U.S. citizens, 18-years-of-age+.  Failure to firmly hold the line on access to that fundamental constitutional-republic right, local or otherwise, when permitted, dilutes, and thus diminishes, the voting power of our citizens.  Hopefully, this move to permit non-citizen local voting, even that limited to school board only, will be halted, by legitimate citizen voter action throughout our country.  We need to restore, preserve, and protect traditional, legal voting rights for America’s citizens only, just as our Founders intended.

(Colorado voter registration reminder cards via breitbart.com, John Binder, 10-10-22; Florida amendment and vote results via “Citizen Requirement for Voting Initiative,” ballotpedia.com, staff, 2020; San Francisco non-citizen local voting exception via APnews.com, Patty Nieberg, 11-7-2020; Non-resident voting in local elections via ncsl.com, staff, 7-11-22; NYC City Council & Mayor approve noncitizen local voting via nytimes.com, Grace Ashford, 1-9-22;  NY Judge overrules NYC Council & Mayor re: local noncitizen voting via nytimes.com, Jeffrey C. Mays, 6-27-22).