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The New York City Council on Thursday approved a measure to allow the nearly 800,000 legal non-citizens in the metropolis to vote in municipal elections.
The measure, which would affect green card holders and those with work authorizations, doesn’t include state or federal elections and people in the country illegally would not be allowed to vote, according to FOX 5 in New York City.
The city would be the largest municipality to allow non-citizens to vote.
The New York State Republican Party last week vowed it would take any action, including litigation, to stop the measure.
NY REPUBLICANS VOW TO TAKE LEGAL ACTION IF DE BLASIO SIGNS BILL ALLOWING NON-CITIZENS TO VOTE
“We pledge action, legal or otherwise, any means necessary to stop this dangerous legislation from undermining our elections,” party chairman Nick Langworthy said.
Langworthy said it would “allow foreign powers … the ability to influence U.S. elections.”
Other opponents have said the measure undercuts the efforts immigrants go through to earn the right to vote and Democratic Majority Leader Laurie Cumbo claimed it might dilute the Black vote.
“This particular legislation is going to shift the power dynamics in NYC in a major way, and we do not have the numbers or the information to know how that is going to impact African-American communities,” she said, according to FOX 5.
Others have said the requirement that the voter has lived in the city for 30 days is too short.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has said he opposes the measure because he believes only the state has the legal authority to impose, but he said he doesn’t plan to veto it.
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Supporters of the bill say it would empower the hundreds of thousands of taxpaying green card holders to have a say about the city they live in, the station reported.
Fox News’ Ronn Blitzer contributed to this report.
