UNCONSTITUTIONAL

New York Court Overturns Law Letting Non-Citizens Vote in Local Elections

Justice Ralph J. Porzio said that allowing non-citizens to vote in local elections in New York City would require a referendum.

A State Supreme Court justice in New York has nullified a law that would have let non-citizens vote in municipal elections in New York City, The New York Times reported. In Monday’s ruling, Justice Ralph J. Porzio said that the law, passed by City Council in December, violated the State Constitution, which stipulates that only eligible citizens are allowed to vote. The law would have allowed more than 800,000 green card holders and permanent legal residents to have their say in local politics, including City Council and mayoral elections, come January. In his ruling, Porzio said that giving non-citizens the right to vote required a referendum. Joseph Borelli, a Republican councilman who was one of the plaintiffs, celebrated the decision, saying that it “validates those of us who can read the plain English words of our State Constitution.”