North Carolina Citizenship Requirement for Voting Amendment (2024)
| North Carolina Citizenship Requirement for Voting Amendment | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 5, 2024 | |
| Topic Suffrage | |
| Status On the ballot | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin State legislature |
The North Carolina Citizenship Requirement for Voting Amendment is on the ballot in North Carolina as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on November 5, 2024.[1]
A "yes" vote supports amending the state constitution to provide that only U.S. citizens who are 18 years old or older can vote in elections. |
A "no" vote opposes amending the state constitution to provide that only U.S. citizens who are 18 years old or older can vote in elections, rather than every citizen. |
Overview
What would the amendment change about voting in North Carolina?
- See also: Text of measure
This measure would prohibit local governments from allowing noncitizens to vote by providing in the state constitution that only a citizen of the U.S., rather than every citizen of the U.S., can vote.[1]
What do other state constitutions say about suffrage and citizenship?
In 1996, the U.S. Congress passed a law prohibiting noncitizens from voting in federal elections, such as U.S. House, U.S. Senate, and presidential elections. Federal law did not address state or local elections.[2]
All state constitutions mention United States citizenship when discussing who can vote in that state's elections. In 43 states, constitutional language discussing citizenship says who can vote (e.g. "every citizen" or "all citizens"), but does not state that noncitizens cannot vote. In seven states (Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, North Dakota, and Ohio) the states' constitutions provide that citizens, but not noncitizens, have the right to vote. In 2018, 2020, and 2022, constitutional amendments to state that only a citizen (rather than every citizen) may vote were approved in six states.
Are other states voting on similar measures in 2024?
- See also: Background
Bans on noncitizen voting at the state level have become more frequent since 2018. Voters in six states approved ballot measures banning noncitizen voting from 2018 to 2022. In 2024, eight state legislatures referred constitutional amendments to the ballot to prohibit the state or local governments from allowing non-citizen voting. The eight states are Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Wisconsin.
As of 2024, municipalities in California, Maryland, and Vermont, along with Washington, D.C., allowed noncitizens to vote in some local elections. In November, voters in Santa Ana, California, will decide on a ballot measure to allow noncitizens to vote in municipal elections.
Jack Tomczak, Vice President of Americans for Citizen Voting, which supports the ballot measures, said, "We, and legislators who sponsor these, are getting ahead of fixing a problem that maybe has not reared its head as much in these states. It’s not like it’s happening everywhere and it must be stopped immediately. But preemption is not a bad thing." Jonathan Diaz, Director of Voting Advocacy for the Campaign Legal Center, said, "These proposed constitutional amendments are aimed really at two things: preventing local governments in those states from allowing non-U.S. citizens to vote in local elections, and advancing this false narrative that non-U.S. citizens are somehow participating in U.S. elections in large numbers, which is totally unsupported by any evidence or facts."[3]
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title for the amendment is as follows:[1]
| “ |
[ ] FOR [ ] AGAINST Constitutional amendment to provide that only a citizen of the United States who is 18 years of age and otherwise possessing the qualifications for voting shall be entitled to vote at any election in this State.[4] |
” |
Constitutional changes
- See also: Article VI, North Carolina Constitution
The measure would amend Section 1 of Article VI of the state constitution. The following struck-through text would be deleted and underlined text would be added:[5]
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Readability score
- See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2024
Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL) and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The state legislature wrote the ballot language for this measure.
The FKGL for the ballot title is grade level 12, and the FRE is 42. The word count for the ballot title is 37.
Support
Supporters
Officials
- State Rep. John Bell (R)
- State Rep. Karl Gillespie (R)
- State Rep. Destin Hall (R)
- State Rep. Timothy Moore (Nonpartisan)
Organizations
Arguments
Opposition
Opponents
Officials
- State Rep. Mary Harrison (D)
Organizations
- Carolina Forward
- Carolina Migrant Network
- Common Cause North Carolina
- Democracy North Carolina
- Down Home North Carolina
- El Pueblo
- League of Women Voters of North Carolina
- NC Megaphone
- North Carolina Asian Americans Together
- North Carolina Justice Center
- Sierra Club North Carolina
Arguments
Campaign finance
If you are aware of a committee registered to support or oppose this measure, please email editor@ballotpedia.org.
| Cash Contributions | In-Kind Contributions | Total Contributions | Cash Expenditures | Total Expenditures | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Support | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Oppose | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
Background
Voting in North Carolina
- See also: Voting in North Carolina
- Check your voter registration status here.
To register to vote in North Carolina, each applicant must be a United States citizen, a resident of the county in which they are registering to vote for at least 30 days before the election, be at least 16 years old at the time of application and at least 18 years old by the time of the subsequent general election, and bot be serving a felony sentence, including probation and parole [6][7] The North Carolina voter registration application is available online.
Voter registration applications can be completed online or submitted to the appropriate county board of elections. Applications must be submitted at least 25 days before the election, but voters can also register and vote on the same day during the early voting period, but not on Election Day.[8]
Voter registration services are also provided by the following agencies:[9]
- Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV)
- Division of Services for the Blind
- Division of Services for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
- Division of Health Benefits
- Division of Child and Family Well-Being/WIC
- Division of Social Services
- Division of Rehabilitation Services
- Division of Employment Security (DES)
- Division of State Operated Healthcare Facilities
Citizenship voting requirement ballot measures
Since 2018, voters have decided on six ballot measures related to adding language about citizenship requirements for voting. Voters approved all six measures with at least 62.9% of the vote. In 2024, eight states are voting on ballot measures addressing citizenship requirements for voting.
Partisanship of legislative votes on referred measures
The following table shows the percentage of Democratic and Republican legislators that supported referring constitutional amendments to the state's ballot requiring citizenship to vote. The average percent of Republican support was 100% while the average percent of Democratic support was 45.6%.
In Alabama and Iowa, legislators passed the referrals with unanimous support from both parties.
State constitutions on suffrage and citizenship
All state constitutions mention United States citizenship when discussing who can vote in that state's elections. In 43 states, constitutional language discussing citizenship says who can vote (e.g. "every citizen" or "all citizens"), but does not state that noncitizens cannot vote. In seven states (Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, North Dakota, and Ohio) the states' constitutions provide that citizens, but not noncitizens, have the right to vote.
Noncitizen-voting in the United States
In 1996, the U.S. Congress passed a law prohibiting noncitizens from voting in federal elections, such as U.S. House, U.S. Senate, and presidential elections. Federal law did not address state or local elections.[2]
Fifteen municipalities across the country allowed noncitizens to vote in local elections as of January 2022. Eleven were located in Maryland, two were located in Vermont, one was New York City, and the other was San Francisco, California. San Francisco allowed noncitizens to vote in school board elections by approving Proposition N in 2016. On January 9, 2022, New York City Mayor Eric Adams signed a bill that would allow noncitizens to vote in municipal elections starting in January 2023.[10]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Amending the North Carolina Constitution
North Carolina requires a 60 percent vote in each legislative chamber during a single legislative session to refer a constitutional amendment to the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 72 votes in the North Carolina House of Representatives and 30 votes in the North Carolina Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.
The constitutional amendment was introduced as House Bill 1074. It was approved in the House on June 27, 2024, by a vote of 99-12 with nine. The Senate approved the amendment on the same day by a vote of 40-4 with six members absent.[1]
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How to cast a vote
- See also: Voting in North Carolina
Click "Show" to learn more about current voter registration rules, identification requirements, and poll times in North Carolina.
| How to cast a vote in North Carolina | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Poll timesIn North Carolina, polling places are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time. Any voter who is standing in line at the time polls close must be permitted to vote.[11] Registration
To register to vote in North Carolina, each applicant must be a United States citizen, a resident of the county in which they are registering to vote for at least 30 days before the election, be at least 16 years old at the time of application and at least 18 years old by the time of the subsequent general election, and bot be serving a felony sentence, including probation and parole [6][7] The North Carolina voter registration application is available online. Voter registration applications can be completed online or submitted to the appropriate county board of elections. Applications must be submitted at least 25 days before the election, but voters can also register and vote on the same day during the early voting period, but not on Election Day.[12] Voter registration services are also provided by the following agencies:[13]
Automatic registrationNorth Carolina does not practice automatic voter registration.[14] Online registration
North Carolina has implemented an online voter registration system. Residents can register to vote by visiting this website.[14] Same-day registrationNorth Carolina allows same-day voter registration during the early voting period only.[15][16] Residency requirementsProspective voters must reside in the county in which they are registering to vote for at least 30 days before the election. Verification of citizenshipNorth Carolina does not require proof of citizenship for voter registration.[6] Verifying your registrationThe North Carolina State Board of Elections allows residents to check their voter registration status online by visiting this website. Voter ID requirementsNorth Carolina requires voters to present photo ID when voting.[17] Note: According to the Board of Elections website, "On April 28, 2023, the North Carolina Supreme Court reversed an injunction against implementation of photo ID legislation. As a result, photo ID laws enacted in 2018 and 2019 will be implemented moving forward, starting with the municipal elections in September, October, and November 2023. A separate federal case challenging the same laws is pending, but no injunction against the laws exists in that case." The injunction was issued on December 16, 2022.[17] The following documents were acceptable forms of identification as of May 2024:[18]
For a list of acceptable student and public employee IDs, click here. | |||||
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 North Carolina State Legislature, "House Bill 1074," accessed June 28, 2024
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Cornell Law School, "18 U.S. Code § 611 - Voting by aliens," accessed March 26, 2020
- ↑ NBC News, "GOP efforts to crack down on noncitizen voting extend to state ballot measures," September 14, 2024
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source. Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid<ref>tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedOverview - ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 North Carolina State Board of Elections, “Registering to Vote,” accessed October 7, 2024
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 North Carolina State Board of Elections, “Who Can Register,” accessed October 7, 2024
- ↑ North Carolina State Board of Elections, “Register in Person During Early Voting,” accessed October 7, 2024
- ↑ North Carolina State Board of Elections, “National Voter Registration Act (NVRA),” accessed October 7, 2024
- ↑ The New York Times, "Noncitizens’ Right to Vote Becomes Law in New York City," January 9, 2022
- ↑ Justia, "NC Gen Stat § 163-166.01 (2022) Hours for voting," accessed May 1, 2023
- ↑ North Carolina State Board of Elections, “Register in Person During Early Voting,” accessed October 7, 2024
- ↑ North Carolina State Board of Elections, “National Voter Registration Act (NVRA),” accessed October 7, 2024
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 NCSL, "State Profiles: Elections," accessed August 30, 2024
- ↑ North Carolina State Board of Elections, “Register in Person During Early Voting,” accessed May 1, 2023
- ↑ Justia, “NC Gen Stat § 163-227.2 (2022),” accessed May 1, 2023
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Voter ID," accessed May 1, 2023
- ↑ North Carolina State Board of Elections, “Voter ID,” accessed May 23, 2024
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