LA City Council takes major step toward letting non citizens vote

Los Angeles voters could soon decide whether noncitizens should have a path to voting in city and school board elections.The City Council voted 10-5 Thursday to advance one of the most controversial proposals in a sweeping Charter reform package headed for the November ballot.The measure, introduced by Councilmembers Hugo Soto-Martínez, will give immigrants who live, work, pay taxes and raise families in Los Angeles a voice in decisions that directly affect their lives.“It just does not make sense to me that someone who moves to Los Angeles for a temporary job has more of a voice than a parent who has been here for decades raising their children through public schools,” Soto-Martínez said during Thursday’s debate.Opponents argued the proposal is moving forward before city leaders know whether it can actually be implemented.Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez questioned how Los Angeles could create a noncitizen voting program when the city’s elections are administered by Los Angeles County.She warned the proposal could require a separate election process and create new costs that have not yet been studied.“I don’t even know that the county has actually been consulted in their ability to implement such a concept,” Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez also cautioned that city leaders could be making promises they are not yet able to keep.“I have apprehension of making false promises that give the suggestion that we’re able to advance something without even further vetting the ability to implement this,” Rodriguez said.“I don’t want to pretend that people are going to take away from this that this is going to be available to them, and it’s not, because it’s not been baked out.”During the debate, city officials acknowledged there is currently no framework in place for noncitizen voting and confirmed substantial work would still be required before any program could be created. Officials said Los Angeles would likely need to take over administration of it...