CCNews: Should Non-Citizens Vote in US Elections?

“Should non-citizens be allowed to vote?” Sounds simple, until you hear elected leaders answer, “It depends.” I’m Ken Mercer, and I’m putting that question right in the center of what election integrity and civic trust actually mean.

We start with a practical thought experiment: if you and I traveled to another country and showed up on election day, would they let us register and vote without citizenship? That comparison forces a hard look at voter eligibility rules in the United States, especially around local elections like city council and school board races. 

I also lay out why last-minute registration and unclear standards can create openings for voter fraud, and why dismissing concerns outright only increases public distrust. The debate isn’t just whether fraud exists, but how much, how it happens, and whether our systems invite it.

Then I break down a Los Angeles mayor debate clip where one candidate says “no” and others say “it depends.” That hedging matters because federal law requires US citizenship for federal elections, so any proposal to let non-citizens vote locally immediately raises a nuts-and-bolts question: how do you stop someone from voting the whole ballot anyway? If we can’t explain the administration, enforcement, and safeguards in plain language, we shouldn’t be surprised when constituents lose faith in the process.

If you care about citizenship requirements, non-citizen voting, municipal election policy, and restoring trust in American elections, listen, share this with a friend, and leave a review. Where do you land on citizen-only voting, and why?

• Asking whether voting should be limited to citizens in federal, state, county, city, and school board elections
• Comparing US voting rules to how foreign countries handle non-citizen voting and election-day registration
• Arguing that same-day registration and unclear eligibility increase risk for voter fraud and weaken confidence
• Reacting to a Los Angeles mayor debate where candidates answer “it depends”
• Questioning how a city could allow local-only voting without enabling illegal voting for state or federal races
• Linking clarity on voter eligibility to broader trust in government decisions on budgets, policing, and safety

I really want to hear your input.

Transcript

Should Non-Citizens Vote? Debate Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

This is Ken Mercer of Mercer Moments in American History, and today I just have a question for you, and I want a conversation on that question. Are you ready? In the United States, should non-citizens be allowed to vote. In elections of the United States of America, should non-citizens be allowed to vote? I must be honest, I thought this was a pretty simple question. You know, one of those questionnaire resolutions is We can all agree to that. Only citizens should be allowed to vote in federal, state, county, city, or school board elections. I thought everyone agreed with that. I was wrong. Because we have some elected officials who say independence. Can you believe that? I want your opinion. I need to learn from your thoughts from this discussion. Should non-citizens be allowed to vote? And let's start with this premise. What if you and I go to a foreign country, anywhere, Europe, Asia, Africa, south of the U.S. border, and we show up on election day and we want to vote? Would they allow you? If you are not a citizen of that nation, would they allow you to vote? In fact, in some places, the United States, they even have where you can register the day of voting, the last day of voting, you can come and you can register the vote and vote. What would happen in foreign countries? Would they ever allow that? They might consider that to be wide open to border fraud. You know, people who come in the last minute to register and vote. We know nothing about their citizenship, their allegiance, have they pledged allegiance to our nation? Again, you tell me, how many foreign countries would allow non-citizens to vote? A little sideline. This thought of allowing people to arrest you the last day of voting and be able to vote, that leaves you wide open to a thing called BF, voter fraud, voter fraud. I know the mania says over and over there is no voter fraud, there's no proof of voter fraud. I'll be very kind. They're lying. They know there is voter fraud. The question that you and I have is how much? Is it enough to throw an election one way or the other? But there is voter fraud going on. How much? How bad? Again, is it enough to throw an election one way or the other? We're just asking a question. It's insulting when the media says there is no voter fraud. And I suggest to you that allowing non-citizers to vote in an election leaves it wide open. Case in point,

LA Mayor Debate

SPEAKER_00 2:40

debate for the mayor of Los Angeles. And apparently in that city, you declare your party. And the forum I saw, the clip that I watched, there were three candidates. There's one man who I thought would be Republican. He declared himself independent. The current sitting Democrat mayor, a woman from Los Angeles. And a third candidate, another female, was also Democrat. That was the forum I saw. One man, two women, the man independent, each of the women was Democrat. And in those cities and those counties, apparently you declare. Declare your party. Actually, I'll tell you, I wish that was every election. I wish every city, county, school board election, you declared a party because you could at least vet out who's the best Republican, best Democrat, best libertarian, best green party, whatever, and run that way. But in this county, apparently you do claim your party. And here was the question to the moderator. It seemed pretty simple. And it went first to the man saying, Should non-citizens be allowed to vote? And his answer was no. Basically, of course not. What kind of controls? How could you watch that? We should not knowingly, knowingly allow non-citizens to vote. And then it came to the center microphone, the current sitting mayor, a female Democrat, and her answer was, It depends. It depends. And the third candidate, also a female Democrat, who yielded saying, Well, I have to agree with my opponent, the mayor. It depends. It depends. These are people who want to be leading a large segment of our population, a large piece of our government. And a basic concept of who gets to vote, it depends. But I do have friends who advocate for that. That you should be allowed to vote if you've bought a pizza or a hamburger. You paid a tax, and you are now paying taxes, you should be allowed to vote. I'm not being funny. I'm just telling you how bizarre some of the thinking is. Well, when I hear this, it depends. But what do you do? Because the federal law, you have to be a United States citizen. So how do you give someone a balance saying, well, you can vote it in a city or the school board elections, but you cannot vote for the state or federal elections? How do they administer that? How do they stop any kind of election fraud by people who might say, Well, I'm gonna vote everything, I'm gonna vote for president of the United States. How do you stop potential election fraud for people who are non-citizens who want to vote the whole ballot, want to vote for state officials and U.S. officials, which should be illegal. You see my point. How would you manage that kind of system? How would you build the faith and trust of your constituents in a system if they know you're purposely allowing non-citizens to vote? Well, this is Ken Mercer. Today I was just a question, and I really want to hear your input. I learned so much more when I hear your comments for or against or somewhere in the middle. Or a question to an official who wants to run a major piece of our government. A simple question: Should non-citizens be allowed to vote in your election? And the answer is it depends. That raises a huge red flag. Because what is their thought process on other items like budget, police force, safety? Does that all just depend? This is Ken Mercer, Mercia Molis at America History. By the way, you know I always give a shout out to one state. Today I'm giving a shout out to the students, the young people of the state of Georgia, those who love God and love our country. They always need our encouragement. They need your prayers. Signed by Eita, please pray for those young people in Georgia. And next time, it could be your state. This is Ken Mercer, Mercer Moments in American History. Thank you. May God bless you.