AUSTIN - State Rep. Travis Clardy, a Republican representing District 11, sent a letter to Gov. Greg Abbott today urging him to add election integrity and impeachment reform to the special session.
Clardy’s letter follows legislation he filed proposing a constitutional amendment clarifying that a voter must be a U.S. citizen.
"Today I presented legislation to Gov. Abbott and asked him to add election integrity to the call for the 4th Special Session, specifically to enshrine citizen-only voting in the Texas Constitution,” Clardy told The Record.
“This may be our last chance to consider this important measure in advance of the critical presidential election cycle next November, and I remain hopeful that my election integrity legislation and impeachment reform bill can be taken up in the time allotted."
More than a dozen states and municipalities around the nation already allow non-citizen voting in local elections.
In his letter, Clardy writes that Article VI of the Texas Constitution provides that one who is a U.S. citizen is qualified to vote but does not state that noncitizens are prohibited from voting.
“By addressing election integrity and implementing measures that guarantee only eligible citizens can cast their ballots, we can ensure Texas does not join more than a dozen other states and municipalities around the nation that already allow non-citizen voting in local elections,” the letter states.
“Governor Abbott, I believe that these important issues deserve our collective attention and swift action to ensure the well-being of our great state, and I urge you to add impeachment reform and election integrity to the call.”
Last month, Americans for Citizen Voting (ACV) sent a letter to Abbott, urging him to support an amendment clarifying that a voter in Texas state elections must be a U.S. citizen.
ACV argues that State v. Stephens, which found that a statute allowing the attorney general to prosecute election law violations is unconstitutional, could prevent the AG from prosecuting election law violations, including rogue municipalities that allow non citizens to vote.
“Given the importance of this issue and the fact that the Attorney General cannot prosecute Election Code violations himself, Americans for Citizen Voting respectfully requests that you support legislation to amend the Texas Constitution to clarify that noncitizens cannot vote in any Texas elections,” the letter states.
An ACV poll shows that 82 percent of Texans support citizen only voting.
During the past Texas legislative session, Senate Joint Resolution 35 was introduced, which proposed a constitutional amendment clarifying that voters must be U.S. citizens. The measure passed the Senate 29-1, but was blocked in the House when 54 Democrats voted "present."
Last October, the D.C. Council voted to allow non-citizen residents the right to vote in local elections.
On Feb. 9, the House passed HJR 24, disapproving the action of the D.C. Council in approving the Local Resident Voting Rights Amendment Act of 2022. A total of 260 representatives voted in favor of the resolution, including 42 Democrats, several of which call Texas home.
Clardy serves the counties of Nacogdoches, Newton, Panola, Rusk, Sabine and Shelby.
The ACV letter was authored by Michael Columbo, a partner at the Dhillon Law Group.