By Jeffery C. Mays and Annie Correal, The New York Times
New York City lawmakers are poised to allow more than 800,000 New Yorkers who are green card holders or have the legal right to work in the United States to vote in municipal elections and for local ballot initiatives.
The bill, known as “Our City, Our Vote,” would make New York City the largest municipality in the country to allow noncitizens to vote in local elections.
The legislation, expected to be approved by the City Council on Dec. 9 by a veto-proof margin, comes as the country is dealing with a swath of new laws to impose voter restrictions, as well as the economic and demographic effects of a decline in immigration.
Voters in Alabama, Colorado and Florida passed ballot measures last year specifying that only U.S. citizens could vote. The states joined Arizona and North Dakota in specifying that noncitizens could not vote in state and local elections.
“It’s important for the Democratic Party to look at New York City and see that when voting rights are being attacked, we are expanding voter participation,” said Ydanis Rodriguez, a councilman who sponsored the bill and represents Washington Heights in Upper Manhattan.
The legislation, first introduced almost two years ago, is the culmination of more than a decade of work to gain local voting rights for some legal permanent residents. It also extends the right to those with work authorization, such as the so-called dreamers, recipients of a program known as DACA that shields young immigrants brought into the country illegally from deportation and allows them to live and work here.
Recent Posts
Zohran Mamdani’s Win Is the Beginning Of The End Of The Old Democratic Party
June 25, 2025
Take Action Now Mamdani’s NYC primary victory shows that the old tricks of the political establishment are dying out—and something new is being……
How Did Zohran Mamdani Upend NYC Politics?
June 24, 2025
Take Action Now New Yorkers are voting on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist for Mayor, has seen a dramatic rise in the…
Will Democrats Do Anything To Stop Trump’s War With Iran?
June 24, 2025
Take Action Now High-ranking Democrats are working on their own way to stop a war with Iran — instead of signing onto a war powers resolution.By…
Big Demonstration Unwelcomes NATO To The Hague
June 23, 2025
Take Action Now The day before the demonstration in the Hague, hundreds of people gathered for a counter-summit, to discuss strategies for moving…