Wisconsin Voters Will See Another Constitutional Amendment on Today's Ballot

Tuesday, November 5th, 2024 -- 12:00 PM

(AP) Wisconsin voters will get a chance in Tuesday's elections to shift the balance of power in the Legislature and decide whether to explicitly forbid foreign nationals from ever voting in the state.

Republicans seized control of both the Assembly and the Senate in 2010. The next year they redrew district boundaries to consolidate their power and have held the majority in both houses for the last 13 years.

The political landscape shifted dramatically last year, though, after liberal justices won control of the state Supreme Court and invalidated the Republican district maps.

That move opened the door for Democratic Gov. Tony Evers to redraw the lines, giving his party hope of making substantial gains in both chambers. The Wisconsin Constitution states that every U.S. citizen can vote in Wisconsin elections.

Republicans are asking voters to approve an amendment that would tweak that language to say that only U.S. citizens can vote in federal, state and local elections held in Wisconsin. Six states have already adopted the language and it’s on the ballot in seven other states besides Wisconsin this cycle.

Republicans across the country have been pushing such amendments, spurred on by the District of Columbia and a number of municipalities in California, Maryland and Vermont allowing noncitizens to vote in local elections.

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