California City Voters Opposed to Noncitizen Voting Measure in Preliminary Results

A man drops his ballot into a ballot box at the Orange County Registrar in Santa Ana, Calif., on March 5, 2024. Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images

Voters in Santa Ana, California, turned out against amending the city’s charter to allow noncitizen city residents to vote in all municipal elections, according to preliminary election results as of Tuesday night at 8:30 p.m.

Those opposed have 65 percent of the vote, while those in favor have 35 percent. The results will continue to be updated in the days ahead.

Preliminary results of Santa Ana's Measure DD on Nov. 5, 2024. Sophie Li/The Epoch Times

A “Yes” vote showed support for allowing any person who has established residency in the city to vote in all municipal elections—regardless of whether the person is a U.S. citizen—so long as they meet all the other requirements to vote in the state.

Measure DD’s failure would mean that Santa Ana, located in Orange County, would not become the first California city to allow noncitizens to vote in municipal elections. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 23 percent of the city’s population are noncitizens.

Measure DD was slated to go into effect by the November 2028 elections.

The measure would have granted both legal and illegal immigrants the right to vote in all local elections, including the mayoral and city council races and on proposed sales tax increases and municipal bond measures.

In an argument against Measure DD, former Santa Ana Councilmember Nelida Mendoza said the ordinance would cost local taxpayers $10 million and result in budget cuts to public safety, emergency services, and other city functions.

“We support our immigrant residents and Santa Ana is a vibrant city rich in the traditions of immigrant communities, families, and businesses,” she wrote. “But we must assess the importance of protecting neighborhoods, cleaning and fixing our streets, and picking up trash.”

The Santa Ana City Council approved the placement of Measure DD on the ballot through a 4–3 vote on Nov. 7, 2023.

Councilmembers Johnathan Hernandez, Benjamin Vazquez, and Jessie Lopez, as well as the mayor pro tem, Thai Viet Phan, supported the measure.

“Federal law is clear that noncitizens can vote in local elections if state and local law allows it,” wrote the councilmembers in favor of the measure.

Carlos Perea, Santa Ana Police oversight commissioner, told The Epoch Times: “Abraham Lincoln and the Republican Party actually defended noncitizen voting as an important part of the pathway to citizenship, while pro-slavery forces at the time tried to end noncitizen voting because immigrants generally opposed slavery. We’re building on Lincoln’s legacy by fighting for Measure DD.”

Councilmembers Phil Bacerra and David Penaloza and Mayor Valerie Amezcua, the minority, voted against bringing the measure to voters.

In Huntington Beach, also an Orange County city, voters passed a measure requiring voter ID. The state, however, filed suit to stop the requirement.

Gov. Gavin Newsom also signed Senate Bill 1174 into law in September banning local governments from enacting or enforcing any regulation requiring voters to present identification at the polls.

Elsewhere in the state, noncitizens can vote in local school board elections in San Francisco, while Oakland has also passed a similar measure.

The Republican Party has made Voter ID part of its 2024 agenda. House Republicans held a hearing in May focused on how to prevent noncitizens from voting.

Republicans also supported the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act to require proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections. It is illegal for noncitizens to vote in federal elections.