Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) voted with the majority of House Democrats on Tuesday against a bill that would have stopped non-citizens from voting in local Washington, D.C. elections after a 2022 policy allowed it.
[RELATED: Non-Citizens Will be Able to Vote in Washington D.C. Elections This November…]
Rep. Pingree was one of 148 Democrats to vote against a bill from Rep. August Pfluger (R-Tex.) that would have repealed Washington D.C.’s 2022 Local Resident Voting Rights Amendment Act, which allowed non-citizens to vote for local positions such as Mayor, City Councilor, and Attorney General.
Though Pingree and the majority of Democrats opposed the bill, their party was far from unified on the issue. Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) joined the 55 other Democrats in supporting the Republican-led bill.
This is not the first time Rep. Pfluger has put forward the same bill. Last year, the House voted on and passed the same measure, with opposition from Pingree and support from Rep. Golden, but the bill was not taken up in the Senate and ultimately had no effect on policy.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) harshly condemned the Democrats who opposed the bill last year.
“Under no circumstances should anyone other than American citizens decide any American elections,” said Speaker Johnson. “143 Congressional Democrats voted to allow Russian spies, Chinese diplomats, and illegal aliens to influence elections in the nation’s capital. It’s shameful.”
