Extends right to vote to aliens lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the U.S.

BILL NUMBER:S1861

Title of bill

An act to amend the election law, the town law and the education law, in relation to the right to vote

Purpose or general idea of bill

This bill would further the democratic principles of American society by extending the right to vote in Federal, State, and local elections conducted in New York State to aliens lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the United States.

Summary of specific provisions

Various sections of the Election Law are amended to effectuate this right: § 5-102 (qualifications of voters); § 5-210 (voter registration); § 7-122 (absentee ballot); § 7-123 (military ballots for military personnel and their spouses, parents, and children); 7-125 (special presidential ballots); and § 8-504 (challenges to absentee, military, and special presidential ballots). In each case, the sections are amended to extend the right to vote to an "alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the United States."

Similar amendments are made to Town Law § 84-a (absentee ballots in special town elections) and § 213-b (absentee ballots in town improvement district elections); as well as the following sections of the Education Law: § 2012 (common or union-free school district elections); § 2018-a (absentee ballots in same); § 2018-b (absentee ballots for same by poll registration); § 2603 (elections in city school districts with under 125,000 residents); and § 2609 (challenges in such city school districts).

Justification

Although it is commonly believed that voting is a right restricted to U.S. citizens under the Federal and State Constitutions, this is not necessarily the case. In fact, the view that voting must be restricted to citizens is a recent one.

Not only is the belief that only citizens can vote historically wrong, it is not even accurate in New York State today. For example, non-citizens are currently permitted to vote in New York City community school board elections, provided they have children attending public school (Education Law § 2590-c(3)). This is permissible under the State Constitution, because it permits voting by "citizens" of New York State, the definition of which needs not be coterminous with U.S. citizens. The United States Constitution allows the individual States to set forth the qualifications of voters in Federal elections, provided that they are not unduly restrictive. Non-citizens are also eligible to vote in other. elections, such as those for governing bodies of Federal community-based anti-poverty programs. These provisions are based on the logic that the best decisions are those made through the democratic process, involving all of those who are affected thereby. This bill would extend this logic to general Federal, State, and local elections.

Prior legislative history

2013-2014: S.422

Fiscal implications

None.

Effective date

January 1st after enactment.