Prohibiting Voting By Noncitizens in District of Columbia Elections
Floor Speech
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Mr. PFLUGER. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of my bill, H.R. 192, which would prohibit individuals who are not citizens of the United States from voting in elections in the District of Columbia.
I think there has been a lot of talk about our Founding Fathers. I point out that I think one of the things that they envisioned was a healthy, functioning Republic with accountability, with D.C. at the epicenter, and D.C. not being a State but a District because they knew that that would change the dynamics of this place.
I, like many others, think that this Federal District is very special, and it is worth having the accountability, and that accountability is here in the United States Congress. It is Congress through the Constitution that our Founders entrusted the care of D.C., specifically ``exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever'' over the District.
Washington, D.C., is going through a tough time. It has not been going well in the last couple of years. In fact, let me just point out that, in 2023, this was the deadliest year on record in Washington, D.C.
Madam Speaker, 274 people were killed. Violent crime spiked by nearly 40 percent. There were proceedings that even the Mayor opposed that had to do with violent crime, carjackings, lowering the penalties and thresholds, and making it a little bit easier. It was a strategy of appeasement that even the Mayor opposed.
In this Congress, last year, we acted and did something. What we did was said no, Washington, D.C., is not going to lower those penalties for things like carjackings.
It was said that we would never get that through the Senate. Guess what? The Senate passed it, and President Biden signed it into law because he said it was ridiculous to reduce accountability measures in the District of Columbia.
So, here we are. In this case, the D.C. City Council has made a very shortsighted decision that I fear could be a harbinger around the country. That decision, I believe, lessens and cheapens citizenship. We see that in other areas, but the D.C. City Council has moved to allow noncitizens, including illegal aliens and foreign agents, to vote in local D.C. elections.
In fact, not only are they allowed to vote, but they are being encouraged. You can look at this flyer right here. This was just sent out by Washington, D.C., to encourage people to vote.
Yes, there may be 500 who are registered--this is a year old--but there are 50,000, according to Washington, D.C., statistics, who are eligible. They are encouraging people to vote for Mayor, for attorney general, for members of the board of education, and more.
Some may argue that, yes, these are just local elections. They are democratic elections that regularly determine taxation, the criminal code that I just referenced, and the election of the very city councilmembers who decide ordinances like who gets to vote, not to mention that many of these are decided by close margins.
I find it inconceivable that the city council and now other city councils around the United States would intentionally dilute the voting power of their constituents for noncitizens who otherwise might not meet the requirements, might not pay taxes, might not be members of the community who want the same things as those who are citizens. Therefore, I believe it is cheapening and lessening citizenship.
As the Capital of our democracy, Washington, D.C., ought to be leading the way, setting the example, not incentivizing the exact practices that our adversaries would relish. Take a look at what happened in San Francisco, where they just swore in somebody who is not a citizen to be an election administrator. The election administrator will administrate elections in that part of California, not just for local and municipal elections but all the elections.
Let's look beyond the Democrats' call for this bill to be deemed discriminatory or false claims about its intended purpose. I am asking my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to look ahead and put citizenship back in its rightful place as the gold standard. Free and fair elections are a prerequisite for a healthy republic. I believe that is what our Founders intended. Noncitizen voting, whether it is one vote or a million votes, dilutes the voting power of the citizen.
Madam Speaker, I believe Congress must act clearly and decisively to bar noncitizens from voting in any election, including Washington, D.C., and I urge my colleagues to support my resolution.
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Mr. PFLUGER. Madam Speaker, I thank all those who have risen in support of this. Let's just think about it in simple terms.
If we go back to our constituents and tell them that Washington, D.C., is allowing noncitizens to vote in local elections, they can't believe it. It has been said by several colleagues on the other side of the aisle that multiple States allowed noncitizens to vote. In the case of Texas, that was literally over 100 years ago, and we figured out it was not a good idea.
It is absolutely ridiculous that this is even a thought. I said it a little bit ago, but Washington, D.C., is not exactly having an easy time with accountability. When you look at the crime rates, violent crime is spiking by 40 percent, and 2023 was the deadliest year on record here, with 274 people killed. Look at what Congress had to do, what President Biden signed into law, to maintain the penalties on violent offenders, specifically in carjackings, because the city council in Washington, D.C., decided to lessen those penalties. This Congress voted on that last year, and the President signed it into law. That is the kind of accountability that Americans are wanting. They want that accountability.
To think that Americans are in favor of having noncitizens vote in Washington, D.C., is ludicrous. That is why this legislation is so important. Washington, D.C., should be the standard. It should be the standard. It is a unique case. It is a unique case in our country because it is not a State.
Congress has jurisdiction constitutionally authorized to us, and we are acting because the city council overstepped. They have done something that even the Mayor is not in favor of.
Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this legislation to put citizenship on the pedestal that it deserves and to stop lessening and cheapening citizenship in this country. I urge support of H.R. 192.
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