The New York Republican Party is vowing legal action against an “unconstitutional” plan by New York City Democrats to allow nearly a million non-citizens to vote in local elections, leaders said on Thursday.
During a press conference, New York State Republican Committee Chairman Nick Langworthy revealed that the committee plans to “take any means necessary to stop” a Democrat plan that would give more than 800,000 non-citizens living in New York City the right to vote in local elections.
“Inviting non-citizens into voting booths was always the next step in the Left’s plan to radically transform America,” Langworthy said.
A total of 34 Democrats on the 51-member New York City Council are backing the plan, which would provide hundreds of thousands of non-citizens on green cards, visas, and work permits the opportunity to vote in city elections so long as they have resided in the city for at least 30 consecutive days.
As Breitbart News has noted, the plan has the potential to massively influence local elections while diluting the votes of American citizens in the city. In June, for instance, Mayor-Elect Eric Adams (D) won the Democrat mayoral primary by less than 7,200 votes.
“This bill, if it becomes law, will allow foreign powers — already having a strong presence here given our international status as a capital of the [United Nations] — the ability to influence U.S. elections,” Langworthy said.
Langworthy said the New York state constitution is “pretty explicit” that voting rights are reserved only for American citizens, calling the plan “perhaps the worst idea out of New York City Democrats ever.”
“It’s against federal law for non-citizens to vote and, in fact, it’s unconstitutional in the state of New York for that to happen,” Langworthy said. “The New York state constitution is pretty explicit … [and] we will pursue every legal avenue to see that this dangerous law is struck down.”
Newly-elected New York City Councilman David Carr, who represents Staten Island, said the issue is not an attack on the city’s 3.1 million-strong foreign-born population but rather a defense of American citizenship. Carr is the son of British and Italian immigrants.
“The right to vote is a right that belongs exclusively to citizenship,” Carr said. “It is a unique mark of citizenship.”
This week, New York City Councilman Rev. Ruben Diaz, a lifelong Democrat representing the Bronx, blasted the plan as an effort that will dilute the votes of American citizens while allowing foreign nationals connected to the global financial system, but who live in Manhattan, to decide local elections.
“This is a dangerous and misguided effort being made by some elected officials to overlook the law which offers citizens – not noncitizens – in New York City, the right to vote,” Diaz said in a statement.
“… New York City, which is home to both the United Nations and Wall Street could easily be taken over by any group of noncitizens who live here for 30 days and vote for the leader of their choice,” he continued.
The New York City Council is expected to approve the plan on December 9.
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jbinder@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter here.
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