MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Voters in swing state Wisconsin will have another choice to make after casting their ballots for president in November — whether to explicitly bar foreign nationals from voting.
At the bottom of the ballot is a statewide referendum authored by Republican legislators asking for permission to amend the state constitution to clearly prohibit non-U.S. citizens from voting in any election held in the state.
Part of a GOP push across the country, the move was spurred by municipalities in a handful of states letting noncitizens vote in local elections. North Dakota, Alabama, Florida, Colorado, Ohio and Louisiana have all adopted the measure in recent years and it’s on the ballot in eight others, including Wisconsin, Iowa, Kentucky and Missouri.
Republicans argue they’re trying to protect election integrity as immigrants pour over the southern border. Democrats and other opponents say the amendment has no practical effect — no Wisconsin municipalities allow noncitizens to vote — and is instead designed to draw conservatives to the polls and stoke anger against foreigners in the United States.