Voters easily pass amendment to bar noncitizens from voting in Kentucky elections

by McKenna Horsley, Kentucky Lantern
November 5, 2024

Kentucky voters approved an amendment to the state Constitution that further prohibits people who are not U.S. citizens from voting in Kentucky elections on Tuesday.

Amendment 1 specifies, “No person who is not a citizen of the United States shall be allowed to vote in this state.” It will be added to the Constitution at the end of a paragraph that says “every citizen of the United States” may vote in their local precinct if they meet residency and other requirements.

According to unofficial results, 64% of voters cast ballots in favor of it — the same margin of votes that defeated Amendment 2, which was also on the ballot and would have allowed the General Assembly to fund nonpublic schools.

The campaign for Amendment 1 had a much lower profile than Amendment 2, as no issue committees filed to raise dollars for or against the measure. The sponsor of the legislation for Amendment 1, Sen. Jason Howell, R-Murray, told the Kentucky Lantern in a previous interview the amendment is a “proactive” measure to protect election integrity.

After a Lexington rally before early voting began, Beshear told reporters Amendment 1 was “a cynical attempt, I think, to just try to turn out or gin up more people.”

“It’s already illegal to vote if you’re not a citizen,” Beshear said.

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