Constitutional Amendment Would Bar Noncitizens From Voting

A proposed amendment to the West Virginia Constitution is on the ballot Nov. 3.  

Titled the “Citizenship Requirement to Vote in West Virginia Elections,” it was proposed by the West Virginia Legislature during the 2026 regular legislative session. 

West Virginia election law already requires a person to be a United States citizen to register to vote. But the state’s constitution does not expressly state that.  

“The duty of the Office of the Secretary of State is to ensure that any amendment approved by the Legislature is placed on every ballot in the state so voters can make the final decision,” Secretary of State Kris Warner said. “A majority vote is required for passage. If approved by voters, the amendment would become part of the West Virginia Constitution upon ratification.”  

According to the language proposed by the legislature, the amendment would establish that only citizens of the United States who are also citizens of West Virginia are entitled to vote in elections held within the state.  

Federal law also forbids non-citizens from voting in federal elections, and no state currently allows them to vote in statewide elections. At least 18 states currently have citizenship requirements in their state constitutions.  

If approved by the voters, the proposed amendment would add that requirement expressly to Article IV, § 1 of the West Virginia Constitution. 

That section currently reads: 

4-1. Election and officers. 

The citizens of the state shall be entitled to vote at all elections held within the counties in which they respectively reside; but no person who is a minor, or who has been declared mentally incompetent by a court of competent jurisdiction, or who is under conviction of treason, felony or bribery in an election, or who has not been a resident of the state and of the county in which he offers to vote, for thirty days next preceding such offer, shall be permitted to vote while such disability continues; but no person in the military, naval or marine service of the United States shall be deemed a resident of this state by reason of being stationed therein. 

The full text of the proposed amendment is as follows:  

Full Text of the Amendment: §4-1. Only citizens of the United States who are citizens of this state shall be entitled to vote at all elections held within the counties in which they respectively reside; but a person who is a minor, or who has been declared mentally incompetent by a court of competent jurisdiction, or who is under conviction of treason, felony or bribery in an election, or who has not been a resident of the state and of the county in which he or she offers to vote, for 30 days next preceding such offer, shall not be permitted to vote while such disability continues; and, a person in the military, naval, or marine service of the United States shall not be deemed a resident of this state by reason of being stationed therein.