Los Angeles proposal to allow noncitizens to vote in local elections sparks online backlash

The Los Angeles City Council advanced a proposal Wednesday to give voters a say in November over whether city leaders may authorize noncitizens to vote in municipal and school board elections, drawing backlash from Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, GOP senators and conservative commentators.

"They have imported voters to win," Musk said on X.

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, also criticized the proposal, tying it to Los Angeles officials’ opposition to federal immigration enforcement.

"The LA City Council wants to give local voting rights to illegals for the explicit purpose of empowering them against ICE and immigration enforcement," Lee said.

ELECTIONS WATCHDOG URGES SENATE GOP TO CLOSE NONCITIZEN VOTING LOOPHOLE

Los Angeles City Councilman Hugo Soto-Martínez introduced a proposal that could allow future city leaders to authorize noncitizens to vote in municipal and school board elections. (Getty Images)

The proposal was introduced by Los Angeles City Councilman Hugo Soto-Martínez, and seconded by Councilwoman Ysabel Jurado, both Democratic socialists. The council approved the noncitizen voting provision on a 10-5 vote as part of a broader charter reform package headed toward the November ballot.

The city clerk's file says the measure would ask the city attorney to prepare documents for a November 2026 charter amendment giving the council authority to later introduce an ordinance authorizing noncitizen voting.

During the council debate, Soto-Martínez said a noncitizen parent who has lived in Los Angeles for years could have less electoral influence than a citizen who recently arrived for work.

"It just does not make sense to me that someone who moves to Los Angeles for a temporary job has more of a voice than a parent who has been here for decades raising their children through public schools," Soto-Martínez said.

KAREN BASS REFUSES TO GIVE 'YES OR NO' ANSWER ON WHETHER NONCITIZENS SHOULD VOTE IN LA: 'IT DEPENDS'

A voter drops off a ballot in Los Angeles, where the City Council advanced a charter reform proposal tied to noncitizen voting in local elections. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., said the Los Angeles vote fit into his broader concerns about California elections and federal voter eligibility legislation.

"Nobody should be surprised. They’ve always wanted illegals to vote, and they want fraud. That’s why I asked the DOJ to investigate what’s going on with California’s elections, and it’s EXACTLY why Democrats REFUSE to support the SAVE America Act," Scott said.

RealClearPolitics White House and national political correspondent Susan Crabtree said the vote showed why national Republicans should invest more heavily in California voter registration and turnout operations.

"On my podcast last week, LA GOP Chair Roxanne Hoge said the national Republicans need to stop using California as a punching bag and a bank (donations from deep-pocketed donors) and start investing in voter registration drives and turn-out operations," she said.

"Now we see why. The LA City Council just took steps to make illegal immigrant voting legal."

MORE THAN 500,000 CALIFORNIANS DEMAND VOTING OVERHAUL, BACK ‘STRAIGHTFORWARD’ ID LAW

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and other conservatives criticized the Los Angeles City Council after members advanced a proposal involving noncitizen voting rights. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Elizabeth Barcohana, California GOP Jewish engagement chair, said the vote placed the issue on the same ballot as a statewide voter ID fight.

"It happened. LA City Council voted 10-5 to include giving illegals the right to vote in the City Charter reform referendum that will be on the November ballot," Barcohana said.

Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez, one of five members who opposed the provision, questioned whether Los Angeles County had been consulted on how it would implement a noncitizen voting system, according to CBS Los Angeles.

"I don’t even know that the county has actually been consulted in their ability to implement such a concept," Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez also warned that city leaders could be advancing the proposal before knowing whether it could be carried out.

"I have apprehension of making false promises that give the suggestion that we’re able to advance something without even further vetting the ability to implement this," Rodriguez said, according to the New York Post. "I don’t want to pretend that people are going to take away from this that this is going to be available to them, and it’s not, because it’s not been baked out."

Federal law prohibits noncitizens from voting in federal elections, while the Los Angeles proposal would be limited to city and Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education races.

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Fox News Digital reached out to council members Hugo Soto-Martinez and Ysabel Jurado for comment, but did not immediately receive a response.