Residents of Portland, Maine will soon vote on giving voting rights to foreign nationals

Portland, Maine
Photo: Ken Gallager On November 2, Portland residents will vote on a ballot measure to give non-citizens the legal right to vote in local elections.
The League of Young Voters is behind the proposal, as they gathered thousands of signatures earlier in the year to force a ballot initiative. The group had until July 14th to collect 5,000 signatures.
Portland is home to about 7,000 foreign nationals, mostly from Sudan and Somalia.
In March, Will Everitt of the League of Young Voters told WCSH News: They are here, they are going to our public schools, and the city gets federal dollars from that. So they count when it comes to getting that federal money, but they suddenly don't count in November.
In a 7-5 vote, Portlands Charter Commission actually rejected extending voting rights to non-citizens. However, only one member of the 12-person panel voiced the opinion that only U.S. citizens should be allowed to vote in elections. Many of those who rejected it, said they simply wanted the voters to decide.
The following information was taken directly from the League of Young Voters' website:
The League of Young Voters empowers young people nationwide to participate in the democratic process and create progressive political change on the local, state and national level with a focus on non-college youth from low income communities and communities of color. The League makes political engagement relevant by meeting young people where they are, working on issues that affect their lives, and providing them with tools, training, and support to become serious catalysts for change in their communities.
Founded in 2003, the League has become one of the strongest youth organizations in the country fighting for progressive change.
Our long term strategy is to build an inspired, engaged and effective culture and community around youth participation. We're building permanent progressive youth-driven field and issue based campaigns that will build power to significantly impact local, state, and federal policy and elections nationwide. We expect it will take decades to achieve this scale, but we're in it for the long haul.
In the past, the League of Young Voters has gone into county jails in an attempt to register voters.
If the ballot measure passes, Portland will join Chicago and several towns in Maryland which allow foreign nationals to vote in municipal elections.
San Francisco residents will also vote on a referendum next month, which if it passes, would allow non-citizens to vote in school board elections.