8 states will vote to bar noncitizen voting, CNN projects, something already illegal in federal elections
By Kaanita Iyer, CNN
(CNN) — Voters in eight states, most of them heavily Republican, will approve ballot measures to require US citizenship to vote, CNN projects, even though it is already illegal for noncitizens to cast ballots in federal elections.
The victorious ballot measures in Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Wisconsin come on the heels of House Republicans passing a bill with a similar goal this summer and with former President Donald Trump and his allies stoking fears of voter fraud ahead of the election.
CNN has fact-checked the Republican allegations of widespread noncitizen voting and found only a tiny number of examples of noncitizens voting in elections when they were ineligible to do so. In one recent example, Michigan prosecutors charged a Chinese citizen with voter fraud and perjury after he allegedly cast a ballot in the 2024 election.
Here are the state ballot measures on noncitizen voting projected to be approved:
Idaho
Idaho voters will approve a ballot measure to amend the state’s constitution to add a sentence saying that noncitizens are barred from voting in any election within the state, CNN projects.
The Idaho Constitution says that “every male or female citizen of the United States” who meets certain age and residency requirements is eligible to vote in the state.
A few municipalities across the country allow noncitizens to vote in certain local elections, including Washington, DC, but none in Idaho.
Iowa
CNN projects Iowa voters will approve a ballot measure that addresses noncitizen voting as part of a broader amendment to the state constitution, which will also update the voting age to reflect the federal standard.
Iowa’s Constitution currently lists the required age of voting as 21, even though it has been abiding by the 26th Amendment of the US Constitution, which set the voting age at 18.
The constitutional amendment will alter the language to say that “only a citizen of the United States of the age of eighteen years” and only a resident of the state can vote – changing both the age and using the phrase “only a citizen” instead of “every citizen.”
Kentucky
Kentucky voters will approve a ballot measure to make an addition to the state’s constitution saying that “No person who is not a citizen of the United States shall be allowed to vote in this state.”
The section of the Kentucky Constitution that this measure will amend already lists citizenship as one of the requirements to vote.
Missouri
Missouri voters will approve an amendment to the state’s constitution to assert that “only citizens of the United States” can vote in elections, CNN projects.
Currently, the state constitution says, “All citizens of the United States” over the age of 18 and those who reside in Missouri “are entitled to vote at all elections.”
The amendment will also outlaw ranked-choice voting, which allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference.
North Carolina
North Carolina voters will approve a ballot measure to change the section of the state constitution that lists the requirements to vote, CNN projects.
The state constitution currently says that “every person born in the United States and every person who has been naturalized” can vote in North Carolina, provided they are over the age of 18 and a resident. With the projected approval of the amendment, the text will be changed to say that “only a citizen of the United States” who has met the other requirements may vote.
The projected result is a win for North Carolina’s GOP supermajority, which advanced the measure to the ballot.
Oklahoma
CNN projects that Oklahoma voters will approve a ballot measure to change the state’s constitution to say that “only” instead of “all” citizens who are residents of the state and over the age of 18 are “qualified” to vote.
The measure landed on the ballot after Oklahoma’s Republican-dominated Legislature voted to advance it.
South Carolina
CNN projects South Carolina voters will approve an amendment to the state’s constitution to say that “only a citizen of the United States and of this State” who is at least 18 years of age and “properly registered” can vote.
The state constitution currently says that “every citizen” can vote if the other requirements are met.
The state’s GOP-led Legislature passed a bill to put this measure on the ballot.
Wisconsin
Wisconsin voters will approve an amendment to the state’s constitution that targets noncitizen voting, CNN projects.
Wisconsin’s Constitution currently says that “every United States citizen” who is over the age of 18 and a resident can vote. The projected result will change the language to state that “only” citizens can vote if they meet the other requirements.
The state’s GOP-led legislature voted to add the measure on the November ballot.
This story and headline have been updated.
CNN’s Clare Foran, Haley Talbot and Daniel Dale contributed to this report.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
