A new bill amending the D.C. election code would give permanent U.S. residents the right to vote in local elections.
Council member Brianne K. Nadeau reintroduced the Local Resident Voting Rights Act, which had been introduced before to the council.
Permanent residents who are not yet citizens and were lawfully admitted to the U.S. would be able to vote in elections for mayor, council, State Board of Education, Advisory Neighborhood Commissions and D.C. attorney general.
“People who have made their permanent homes here should have a hand in who represents them in government. The District of Columbia has long been a place that has welcomed immigrants into our community, and it’s time to allow for their full participation in our institutions,” Nadeau said in a statement.
Council members Elissa Silverman, Robert White, Christina Henderson, Brooke Pinto, Janeese Lewis George and Charles Allen co-introduced the legislation.
In 2017, a similar measure in College Park, Maryland, was debated but failed when it did not have the required number of votes.
