VOA新闻杂志2024--Can Noncitizens Vote in US Elections?

United States law bans noncitizens from voting in federal elections, such as elections for president, the Senate, and the House of Representatives.

Like many states, Pennsylvania also bans noncitizens from voting in elections for state offices.

A 1996 federal law permits fines and imprisonment¹ for up to a year for noncitizens who vote in federal elections. Violators can also be deported³. When people in the U.S. register to vote, they swear officially that they are U.S. citizens.

In Pennsylvania, as in other states, people must meet requirements, including citizenship⁴, to register to vote. The state constitution says a voter must "have been a citizen of the United States at least one month." They also have to prove that they live in the state and voting district.

Ellen Lyon is a spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Department of State. Lyon said, if a noncitizen did try to vote in a Pennsylvania election, they would face punishment, including imprisonment and deportation⁵.

The department is "not aware of any instances of noncitizens registering to vote or voting in any recent elections," Lyon said in an email to The Associated Press (AP).

Ron Hayduk is a political science professor at San Francisco State University in California who studies voting laws for noncitizens. He said that studies show noncitizens are not illegally voting in big numbers.

There have been some reports of noncitizens illegally casting ballots⁷, Hayduk said, but such incidents are very rare.

The Brennan Center for Justice is a research group at New York University. In 2017, the group studied 42 voting areas across the United States in the 2016 election. It reported that of 23.5 million votes cast, election officials found about 30 cases of possible noncitizen voting that they referred, or reported, to law enforcement.

The state of Georgia examined its voter lists in 2022 and found fewer than 2,000 times when noncitizens tried to register to vote over the last 25 years. None of those people were registered because they did not qualify. Millions of new Georgia voters registered during that time.

In 2017, Pennsylvania said that it had to fix a mistake that permitted noncitizen immigrants to register to vote when getting a driver's license⁸. State election officials said noncitizen immigrants might have cast 544 ballots illegally - out of more than 93 million ballots in elections dating back 18 years, going back to 2000.

Daniel Mallinson is an associate professor of public policy and administration at Penn State University in central Pennsylvania. He said claims that noncitizens are voting in large numbers have been "clearly debunked¹⁰ over and over and over again."

The AP says no state constitutions clearly permit noncitizens to vote. But some cities and towns in the states of California, Maryland and Vermont, as well as the District of Columbia, do permit voting by noncitizens in some local elections such as for school board and city council.

Words in This Story

deport² - v. to force (a person who is not a citizen) to leave a country

district -n. an area set up by a government for a special purpose

aware -adj. to know about something or to know that it exists

cast - v. to officially complete a ballot⁶ and offer it in an election

license -n. a document that gives the holder¹¹ permission to do something like operate a vehicle

debunk⁹ - v. to show that something (such as a belief or theory) is not true; to show the falseness of (a story, idea, statement, etc.)

1 imprisonment   

n.关押，监禁，坐牢

参考例句：

• His sentence was commuted from death to life imprisonment.他的判决由死刑减为无期徒刑。
• He was sentenced to one year's imprisonment for committing bigamy.他因为犯重婚罪被判入狱一年。

2 deport   

vt.驱逐出境

参考例句：

• We deport aliens who slip across our borders.我们把偷渡入境的外国人驱逐出境。
• More than 240 England football fans are being deported from Italy following riots last night.昨晚的骚乱发生后有240多名英格兰球迷被驱逐出意大利。

3 deported   

v.将…驱逐出境( deport的过去式和过去分词 )；举止

参考例句：

• They stripped me of my citizenship and deported me. 他们剥夺我的公民资格，将我驱逐出境。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The convicts were deported to a deserted island. 罪犯们被流放到一个荒岛。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

5 deportation   

n.驱逐，放逐

参考例句：

• The government issued a deportation order against the four men.政府发出了对那4名男子的驱逐令。
• Years ago convicted criminals in England could face deportation to Australia.很多年以前，英国已定罪的犯人可能被驱逐到澳大利亚。

6 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

7 ballots   

n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 license   

n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许

参考例句：

• The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
• The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。

9 debunk   

v.揭穿真相，暴露

参考例句：

• let's debunk some of the most common falsehoods.让我们来揭穿一些最常见的谬误吧。
• Sequences of maps can also debunk misconceptions.一系列的地图，也有助于厘清错误概念。

10 debunked   

v.揭穿真相，暴露( debunk的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• His theories have been debunked by recent research. 最近的研究揭穿了他的理论的真相。
• Some advertising slogans should be debunked. 某些夸大的广告用语应予揭露。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 holder   

n.持有者，占有者；(台，架等)支持物

参考例句：

• The holder of the office of chairman is reponsible for arranging meetings.担任主席职位的人负责安排会议。
• That runner is the holder of the world record for the hundred-yard dash.那位运动员是一百码赛跑世界纪录的保持者。