(NewsNation) — The decision on a constitutional amendment clarifying that only U.S. citizens can vote is now in the hands of Texas residents. NewsNation’s Alex Caprariello says this situation is right in Republican Gov. Greg Abbott’s wheelhouse.
Abbott, who is known for making swift changes to his state, signed off on the new legislation Monday, setting up the vote for residents this fall.
If the vote is approved, the joint resolution will add language to the Texas Constitution that states people who are not U.S. citizens can’t cast ballots in the election. Both the Texas Senate and Texas House of Representatives passed the notion in the past two months. This comes as part of a larger shift across the country, as Arkansas, Kansas and South Dakota will have similar measures on their ballots.
Fifteen states have already explicitly banned noncitizen voting. Federally, non-U.S. citizens cannot vote in federal, state and some local elections.
“I just signed off on a joint resolution to make it crystal clear under the Texas Constitution that if you’re not a citizen of the United States of America, you are not allowed to vote in Texas,” Abbott posted in a video on X.
Gov. Abbott says more than 6,500 non-citizens have been removed from voter rolls in Texas since 2021, equaling less than 4% of the total registered voters in the state.
In 1996, Congress passed a law blocking non-citizens from voting in federal elections, yet did not clarify if the same rule applies to state or local elections.