Proposed Ohio Constitutional Amendment Would Limit Voting to Citizens

The question of voting by non-citizens will be determined in Ohio, with the legislature's House Joint Resolution 4 (HJR 4) adopted by the state Senate on June 1 and putting the measure on the November ballot. 

Sponsored by Republican State Reps. Jay Edwards and Bill Seitz, the bill would block local governments from allowing non-citizens to vote in local elections. 

The legislation comes in response to certain localities enabling non-citizens to vote in local elections. 

"In 2020, the Village of Yellow Springs exposed ambiguity in Ohio's Constitution when it attempted to allow non-citizens the right to vote in local elections," Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose said in a statement. "Without the clarity provided in the Amendment, future Secretaries of State might choose to agree to bestow the precious, uniquely American right to vote to people who are not American citizens."

HJR 4 passed in the House and the Senate with significant support on both sides of the aisle.

Democrats in the House were more reluctant to cast their votes for the controversial amendment to the state constitution, with 28 out of 35 voting no (the bill passed 68-28).

In the Senate, every Senate Democrat supported the bill (32 out of 33 supported it, with no opposition).

As lawmakers voted, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) warned against possible dangers from the legislation. 

In a recent statement, ACLU's chief lobbyist in Ohio Gary Daniels, said: "[T]he ACLU of Ohio is also deeply concerned about the timing of this particular effort while 'Replacement Theory' (the idea in certain circles that white Americans are being systemically and deliberately 'replaced' by non-white) and similar ideas continue to result in threats and violence against others."

Jason Snead, Executive Director of Honest Elections Project Action, hit back at the ACLU when he told Newsmax: "This is another example of folks on the fringe left trying to grasp at straws."

In other words, the ACLU is using the 'Replacement Theory' to make its case, and the much-criticized theory has nothing to do with the prerequisites for voting. 

According to a recent poll conducted for the Honest Elections Project Action, a group dedicated to election integrity, 84% of nationwide voters say non-voters should not be able to vote. The same poll found that 75% of Hispanic voters and 69% of Black voters nationwide desire a ban on non-citizen voting.

As is evident in the Ohio legislature, a majority of Democrats believe that only citizens should be allowed to vote. In the same survey, 77% of Democrats and 83% of Independents support prohibiting non-citizens from voting. 

A simple majority of Ohio voters this fall is required for the proposal to become an amendment to the state Constitution.

Micah Hart, a Newsmax intern, is studying politics and journalism at Hillsdale College in Michigan.