On October 1, a federal judge in Florida dismissed a criminal charge against Chelsea Cox, a Jamaican citizen accused of voting illegally in the 2020 presidential election*. The ruling rests on whether the federal government has the authority to enforce the law under which she was charged. That question may be legitimate. But beneath it lies a more fundamental one: How did we reach the point where whether a noncitizen may help choose America's government is even a matter of controversy?
We live in a time when norms, standards, and reality itself are up for debate. There was a time when it was understood that American elections were for American citizens.
Today, we debate whether proof of citizenship should be required to register, and how election officials should identify noncitizens on the voter rolls. And when cases of noncitizen voting come to light, the argument often shifts to whether the numbers are large enough to matter.
The troubling question is not simply how many noncitizens vote. It is why a self-governing nation would grow uncertain, or complacent, about something so fundamental: Americans, and only Americans, choose who represents them, not foreigners who still pledge allegiance to another nation.
Trust is one of the greatest assets of a free society. Americans accept election results whether or not they voted for the winners. We expect a peaceful transfer of power. We pay taxes even when we disagree about how the money is spent, and obey laws we sometimes oppose.
But what happens to that trust when citizens begin to question the integrity of their elections? If noncitizens can unlawfully influence American elections, what confidence can citizens have that their votes truly determine who governs them? And how long will Americans keep faith in a system they no longer trust?
This boundary is not an expression of hostility toward immigrants. America has welcomed generations of immigrants, myself included, and millions have become citizens. Naturalization carries meaning precisely because citizenship carries privileges that noncitizens do not yet possess. If there is no meaningful distinction between citizen and noncitizen at the ballot box, we should ask what citizenship itself has come to mean.
A ballot is not simply a piece of paper bearing names and party choices. It is an equal share in the sovereignty of the nation, a sacred privilege held by citizens, whether native-born or, like millions of us, immigrants who became citizens.
A nation that respects its own sovereignty should work diligently to secure its elections: ensuring every vote is legitimate, verifying ballots through lawful means, preventing illegal ballots from being cast, and investigating those that are.
Calling that voter suppression misunderstands what is being protected: a sacred privilege that belongs to every citizen, and only to citizens. Guarding it is the least a self-governing nation owes its citizens.
*WHQR commentaries don’t necessarily reflect the views of WHQR Public Media, its editorial staff, or its members.