The New York City Council backed a 2022 ordinance it approved that gave non-citizens with work permits or green cards the ability to vote in local elections by filing a notice of appeal to the highest court of the stated.
“Empowering New Yorkers to participate in our local democratic process can only strengthen New York City by increasing civic engagement,” In a statement, council spokeswoman Rendy Desamours stated that the legislature found the legislation to be in line with the state constitution, electoral law, and local home rule.
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The Second Judicial Department of the Appellate Division of New York declared the Act illegal a month ago.
It had attempted to permit around 800,000 qualified non-citizens to vote in municipal elections, such as those for mayor and City Council. However, a group of right-leaning politicians, including Republicans from Staten Island Vito Fossella, Joe Borelli, and Nicole Malliotakis, has challenged Local Law 11 of 2022. They contend that the act is illegal and that the right to vote is sacrosanct to citizens of the United States.
When asked if the administration of Mayor Eric Adams would file an appeal with the New York State Court of Appeals, representatives did not immediately reply. The government had been defending the statute and had challenged a lower court’s decision against it.
At a demonstration outside City Hall on March 25, 2024, the New York Immigration Coalition and its allies shouted “our city, our vote” as the appeal deadline drew near.
Democrat Alexa Avilés of Brooklyn, the chair of the council’s immigration committee, stated, “So many of our residents have been paying taxes, have been contributing to this community and yet they have no say. That ain’t right.” Aviles noted, “Granting voting rights to someone does not take someone else’s voting rights away. We are making the pie larger.”
Congressman Malliotakis had denounced the action in a statement, adding, “There is nothing more important than preserving the integrity of our election system and this unconstitutional law that has been struck down in two consecutive wins only diminished the voices of our citizenry.”
