A Santa Ana, California ballot measure will allow non-citizens to vote in the city’s local elections, according to a report from Politico.
Measure DD will amend the city’s charter to “give noncitizens the right to vote in local elections, including for mayor, city council and local ballot measures,” the outlet reported.
The proposal would not apply to state and federal elections.
Carlos Perea, the executive director of the pro-immigrant rights group the Harbor Institute, told volunteers during an event, “What is happening right here in Santa Ana is going to send shockwaves across the state and across the nation.”
If the measure is defeated, it will be a “dagger plunged into the heart of the nationwide movement for noncitizen voting,” conservative activist and lawyer James Lacy said.
If the measure is passed, the Santa Ana City Charter will be amended to allow non-citizens to vote in local elections by November 2028.
About 20% of the city’s residents are non-citizens.
