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President Trump said the SAVE Act would “guarantee” Republican victory in the midterm elections. What does the bill include, and is there a chance it will actually pass?
Los Angeles officials are considering opening the way for non-citizens to vote in local elections. If the effort goes ahead, it would come amid continued scrutiny of the security of U.S. elections and voting.
Los Angeles City Councilman Hugo Sotomartínez filed a motion on April 29 to begin the process of placing the measure on the November ballot.
The bill itself, even if approved by the City of Los Angeles, would not immediately allow non-citizens to vote, according to the City Councilman’s office. City officials would need to adopt an ordinance establishing how noncitizen voting would work, he said.
“For me, this is simply a question of fairness,” Sotomartinez said. “My parents worked hard, paid taxes, and raised their children in public schools after immigrating from Mexico, but for decades they had no say in the decisions that shaped their community until they became citizens.”
The motion states that under the Trump administration, the city of Los Angeles does not have the authority to “completely suspend” federal immigration enforcement, but the city charter could be amended to “give immigrant residents the right to participate and empower” board elections for the city and the Los Angeles Unified School District.
“Despite their many economic and cultural contributions, non-citizen Angelenos remain disenfranchised and underrepresented in local elections and decisions that determine their quality of life,” the motion reads. “In order to develop a more representative electorate, it is imperative that cities grant non-citizens the right to vote in their cities of residence and significantly strengthen them.”
Do non-referendums exist elsewhere?
You must be a citizen to vote in federal elections. However, some regions allow noncitizens to vote in local elections, according to USAGov.
For example, San Francisco allows certain non-citizens to vote in school board elections. But a notice on San Francisco’s website warns that information provided to the Elections Department “may be obtained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement,” raising real questions about the risks noncitizens may face when participating in local elections.
President Donald Trump has made numerous claims over the years about fraud in U.S. elections. In recent months, who can vote and how they can vote has been the subject of presidential and Congressional action, from executive orders on voter rolls and mail-in voting to the Save America Act. The latter is billed as an election security measure to prevent non-citizens from voting, but this is already illegal and extremely rare. In 2024, the American Immigration Council reported that there were fewer than 70 cases in the past 40 years in which noncitizens were proven to have voted in elections.
What’s next for LA?
The November voting measures are still some way off.
The motion must go through a City Council committee for approval. According to the city council member’s office, the city council will then vote on it by June 30th.
USA TODAY reporter Nicole Faller contributed to this article.
Paris Barraza is a reporter covering Los Angeles and Southern California for the USA TODAY Network. please contact her pbarraza@usatodayco.com.
