The city of Frederick, Maryland, has granted non-citizens the right to vote in local elections.
The move by the city makes Frederick the largest municipality in the state to allow non-citizens to vote.
On Thursday night, the Board of Alderman voted 4-1 to grant green card holders and illegal immigrants the right to vote in local elections.
Under the new rule, illegal immigrants and green card holders must only prove they reside in Frederick to vote.
The move by the Alderman board comes after receiving pressure from the ACLU and illegal immigrants residing in Frederick.
WUSA 9 reported that the new voting laws will allow nearly 6,400 non-citizens to vote in local elections.
With a 4-1 vote, the Board of Aldermen approved the legislation to allow green card holders and undocumented immigrants to vote locally. https://t.co/FabKFlcxQp
— WUSA9 (@wusa9) September 20, 2024
Per WUSA 9:
The City of Frederick has become the largest municipality in Maryland to approve non-citizen voting in local elections.
Late Thursday night, the Board of Aldermen voted 4-1 to grant green card holders and undocumented citizens the right to vote locally. The only dissenting vote was that of Alderman Kelly Russell.
Under the new changes non-citizen voters would still have to prove that they reside in Frederick. Convicted felons would be ineligible to vote under the legislation.
The Board of Aldermen approved the legislation following pressure from advocacy groups like American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and testimonies from undocumented immigrants.
The new rule change in voting will not allow non-citizens to vote in the general election.
