Days after the Burlington City Council moved forward a measure that would give all city residents the right to vote, regardless of citizenship status, Gov. Phil Scott said he opposed noncitizen voting measures.
“It just hits me as not being right,” Scott said.
Scott said Wednesday that legalizing noncitizen voting would raise questions about whether nonresidents — such as businesses owners or second-home owners — who pay taxes to a town should also have the right to vote there. He is also concerned that maintaining a separate voter list would present unintended civil rights issues.
“We need to really, really be careful as we move forward with anything like this,” Scott said Wednesday.
Proponents argue that residents who are not U.S. citizens are taxpayers and are affected by decisions made by local government.
The governor said he’s heard from many people who pay taxes in towns where they have businesses who are concerned they can’t weigh in on municipal policy decisions as voters.
“So where does that lead us then? Are we going to allow people who have businesses to vote as well, because they’re impacted as well,” Scott said.
The governor said the state should focus on boosting voter participation instead of extending voting rights to noncitizens.
“There’s an obligation as citizens to vote, and I think we should focus on getting more people to vote who have that privilege and we’re not doing a very good job of that when you see the numbers,” he said.
Noncitizens would only be able to vote in local, and not statewide or federal elections, so city clerks might need to keep a separate checklist of noncitizen voters, some argue, which could present a civil rights issue.
Municipalities that approve proposals for noncitizen voting must have a charter change approved by the Vermont House, Senate and governor.
In April, the Vermont House approved a proposed Montpelier charter change that would allow noncitizens who reside in the capital and who are living in the U.S. legally to cast ballots in local elections. The Senate will take up the measure in 2020.
Rep. Mary Hooper, D-Montpelier, who sponsored Montpelier’s charter change, said Wednesday that the measure would encourage more residents to be involved in the civic process.
“In a time when we’re challenged by our demographics, I think anything we can do to invite people in and tell people that they’re valuable we should,” Hooper said.
“I support it as a way to make our community stronger,” she said.
Montpelier’s measure would likely benefit fewer than a dozen residents, officials said earlier this year.
Burlington’s noncitizen voting measure would need to receive the support of voters in 2020, and then approval from the Legislature and the governor before it became law.
In 2015, 58% of Burlington voters rejected a similar proposal.
City Councilor Adam Roof, who proposed the resolution, said it was a “viable way to limit barriers to our democratic process.”
As of 2014, about 3,200 Burlington residents couldn’t vote in local elections because they were refugees not yet eligible for U.S. citizenship, according to the resolution.
Roof’s resolution passed Monday night in a 10-2 vote.
City Councilor Ali Dieng, D/P Ward 7, an immigrant from Mauritania, opposed the measure and said the city should focus on improving voter turnout for residents who are already citizens.
“Voting is sacred, let’s help people with the pathway to citizenship,” Dieng said.
