A House vote on a bill that would require proof of citizenship for voting in federal elections instantly became an issue in Arizona’s Senate race.
In a largely party-line 221-198 vote, the House passed a bill Wednesday to modify the 1993 National Voter Registration Act. Republicans argued that it was necessary to prevent noncitizen immigrants from voting. Democrats called it a move to put barriers in the way of voting and sow doubt about the results of elections.
Kari Lake, the front-runner in the Republican primary for Arizona’s open Senate seat, claimed that Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego’s vote against the bill would “allow illegal immigrants to vote in our elections” — even though noncitizen voting at the federal level is illegal under current law.
