LA City Council approves ballot measure to allow non-citizens to vote in local elections
The Los Angeles City Council on Thursday approved a ballot measure for the November election to allow non-citizens to vote in local races.
Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez proposed the idea.
"I recognize the concerns around how much money it's going to cost, who is going to be eligible," he said. "What I believe the choice in front of us is: if you believe people who are residents of this city, who contribute, who pay their taxes, have their businesses, should we explore how we give them the ability to vote in local elections?"
For now, supporters said the plan would focus on immigrants who already have some form of status, including people enrolled in DACA and those with active asylum cases.
There are many details that still have to be worked out before the final language is placed on the ballot.
"We actually find ourselves in a difficult situation because we're either going to have to finance our own separate type of ballot," Councilmember Monica Rodriguez said. "I don't even know that the county has been consulted on how to implement such a concept."
The issue has received a firestorm of criticism from Republican leaders.
"I cannot believe a city that is unable to fight fires, to help broken souls that are homeless and drug addicted, that can't even fight crime on our streets or pick up the garbage, that this is what the LA City Council spends their time doing.
Councilmember Nithya Raman, who is running against Mayor Karen Bass, supports the measure.
"I'm very supportive of exploring, expanding this," Raman said. "Parents and school boards have done this in other cities."
CBS LA asked Angelenos about the issue. Some said they needed to know more about the measure; others support the concept outright.
"I think people who are non-citizens still deserve to vote because they are part of our community, regardless if they are a citizen or not," resident Victoria Esparza said. "They still contribute in good ways to our community."
