The state’s Supreme Court of Appeals, the New York Court of Appeals, blocked the law Thursday, allowing non-citizens to vote in local elections.
A former New York City Council member responded to the verdict, saying it should be an “open and closed case” and that the law is “embarrassing.”
In a court filing by New York City lawyers, the city said non-US citizens make up about a third of the city’s adult population.
The nearly unanimous 6-1 decision blocked the law passed by New York City’s majority Democratic city council in 2021, creating nearly one million non-citizens eligible to vote in city elections, including mayors and city councils.
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New York’s highest court ruled on Thursday that it would block laws that allow non-citizens to vote in local elections. (Tyler A. McNeill/Melissa Sugeritt)
Those who support the law argued that the New York Constitution’s provisions on voter qualifications guaranteed citizens over the age of 18 to vote while not denying non-citizens’ rights.
Judge Rowan Wilson wrote in his decision that the New York State Constitution clearly states that only citizens are eligible to vote.
Wilson wrote that, under the logic of the appellant, local governments “have freely enacted laws that allow anyone to vote.”
“Today’s New York Constitution brings out a solid line of restrictions on voting for citizens,” he said. “The “citizen” is evident from language and restrictions as conditions of voter eligibility, not as a floor. The franchise is extended only to citizens whose voting rights are established through appropriate evidence. ”
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The decision would obstruct the law passed in 2021 and make nearly one million non-citizens eligible to vote in city elections, including mayors and city councils. (Fox News Photo/Joshua Comins)
“The state constitution and law are clearly written and written in clear terms,” Joe Borelli, one of the plaintiffs in the case and a former New York City Councilman who voted against the law, told Fox News Digital.
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“This is a constantly open and closed case, and it’s embarrassing that the city council fought so hard to skirt the law, undermine the constitution and weaken the votes of its citizens,” he said.
The ruling supports a previous decision by a lower court that overturns the law. Associate Judge Jenny Rivera was the only member of the court that opposed it.
Peter Pinedo is a political writer for Fox News Digital.
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