Battleground Michigan Set to Debate Citizen-Only Voting Initiative
14th December 2024
Lawmakers in Michigan—one of the most fiercely contested battleground states in the 2024 presidential election—will consider an amendment to the state Constitution to ensure that only citizens vote.
Michigan state Rep. Bryan Posthumus, the No. 2 Republican in the House as floor leader, says that next month he will propose a constitutional amendment requiring prospective voters to produce proof of U.S. citizenship during voter registration and a government-issued photo ID when casting a ballot.
Current Michigan law allows either an ID or a signed affidavit.
Posthumus’ proposal is in response to a Chinese national who cast a ballot this year in Ann Arbor, Michigan, during early voting.
Although the Chinese national reported himself, local officials said the vote was still counted because there is nothing to be done after a ballot goes through a tabulator. He was charged with illegally voting and perjury for falsely stating in an affidavit that he was a U.S. citizen when registering to vote.
“They can no longer say this is a right-wing conspiracy theory. A foreign national voted in Michigan,” Posthumus told The Daily Signal. “The reason we know he voted is because he stood up and told on himself. Now that people know it can be done, what’s to stop others from trying to illegally vote again?”
The Michigan proposal also comes after eight other states enacted laws or approved constitutional amendments on the November ballot to ensure that only U.S. citizens can vote.