That’s what this amendment does that’s all this amendment does. There are rational barriers to participation in democracy, and the citizenship requirement is one of the most basic.īut we don’t like to be manipulated. It’s not because we want noncitizens to vote – we don’t. That is why we recommend a “no” vote on Amendment 1. Similar measures are on the ballot in Alabama and Colorado, both of which have tight Senate races that could help decide the majority in 2021 – but not in California, the only state where noncitizen voting rights have even been considered. It’s an ugly explanation, but it fits.įor the second tell, look outside Florida. In other words, it’s cynical ballot bait, deceiving low-information voters to lure them to the polls. That suggests that the real goal was not to pass this amendment – but to get it on the ballot, where it might attract conservative, anti-immigrant voters who might otherwise sit this election out. The Florida Citizen Voters website doesn’t appear to have been updated for more than a year. Instead, the Amendment 1 campaign went curiously dormant. That’s when most campaigns shift gears, from signature-gathering to campaigning. You might recall the campaign: For a few months in the summer of 2019, signature-gatherers swarmed parking lots and main streets, asking people if they wanted to keep “illegal immigrants” from voting in Florida.īy September 2019, the amendment had nearly double the signatures it needed to make the ballot. Nearly every penny of that was spent on the signature-gathering process to get the amendment on the ballot. In total, Florida Citizen Voters has reported $2.5 million in cash contributions and $5.8 million in in-kind contributions. More: OUR VIEW: What's the real intent of citizen voting amendment? So what is Loudon’s group, Florida Citizen Voters, really up to? State campaign finance records might hold a clue. The Florida Constitution doesn’t allow that – not now, and not if Amendment 1 passes. And he’s throwing a red herring when he points to an effort, in some California cities such as San Francisco, to allow noncitizens to vote in local races. So Amendment 1 backer John Loudon isn't exactly being honest when he says there’s a “loophole” in the state Constitution that might allow noncitizens to vote. Watch Video: 2020 elections: Amendment 1 changes one word in voting law There is some emotional cargo in switching from an inclusive modifier (“Every”) to an exclusive one (“Only”) but nothing anyone would lose sleep over. Currently, the Florida Constitution says this about voting: "Every citizen of the United States who is at least eighteen years of age and who is a permanent resident of the state, if registered as provided by law, shall be an elector of the county where registered.”Īmendment 1, if passed, would change that first word, “Every citizen … ” to “Only a citizen…” That’s it. Start with what Amendment 1 would actually do. More: Big issues and big money set tone for constitutional amendment campaigns That’s not going to change, no matter what voters mark on their ballots.īut there are reasons to consider voting "no." And they start with telling the backer of this amendment that Florida voters aren’t fools, and that they don’t appreciate the dishonest, manipulative intent behind this ballot initiative. And that “yes” vote probably won’t do any harm. Maybe there’s a problem here,” and vote yes … just in case. But as they zip down their ballot, they might pause on Amendment 1 and think, “Huh. Most Floridians, if they think about it, know this. More: Don't forget about those amendments 3 election, no matter how people vote on proposed constitutional Amendment 1. That’s what the Florida Constitution says right now, and that’s what it will say the day after the Nov. It’s Civics 101: You have to be a citizen to vote.
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