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Sean Hannity in the spin room after a Republican presidential primary debate hosted by FOX News Channel Aug. 23, 2023, in Milwaukee. (AP) Sean Hannity in the spin room after a Republican presidential primary debate hosted by FOX News Channel Aug. 23, 2023, in Milwaukee. (AP)

Sean Hannity in the spin room after a Republican presidential primary debate hosted by FOX News Channel Aug. 23, 2023, in Milwaukee. (AP)

Madison Czopek
By Madison Czopek March 1, 2024

Sean Hannity is wrong. ‘Illegal immigrants’ cannot vote in New York City’s local elections

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  • New York City passed 2021 legislation that would have allowed some immigrants to vote in municipal elections. The law never took effect. 

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With one sentence, Fox News host Sean Hannity misinformed millions of viewers about voting rights in New York City.

During the Feb. 29 episode of his prime-time show "Hannity," which averages 2.36 million viewers, the host falsely claimed that immigrants in the U.S. illegally are allowed to vote in New York City elections. 

Hannity was interviewing former President Donald Trump at the U.S. southern border. During a discussion about migrants entering the country, Trump said migrants are being allowed into the U.S. because the Biden administration "maybe want(s) the votes," and that Democrats are trying to "register people right now as we speak," a claim we previously rated Pants on Fire!  

Hannity responded, "In New York City, for example, local elections, illegal immigrants can vote."

The show cut to a commercial break and let the inaccurate claim stand.

New York City passed 2021 legislation that would have allowed some immigrants to vote in municipal elections. But that law never took effect. 

We contacted Fox News for comment and did not receive a reply.

(Internet Archive)

Trump’s speculation about registering immigrants in the country illegally to vote echoes the discredited and racist "great replacement" conspiracy theory that says Democrats support increased immigration as part of a plan to replace white people with nonwhite people. Trump and other Republicans have pushed the theory in recent months.

Featured Fact-check

Noncitizens cannot vote in New York City municipal elections

In 2021, New York City lawmakers approved legislation that would have allowed about 800,000 noncitizen New York residents to vote in municipal elections, if they had lived in the city for 30 days and were legal permanent residents of the U.S. or had work authorization. 

The legislation would have applied to local elections. Only U.S. citizens are allowed to vote in national elections.

The New York City law was immediately challenged in court and never took effect. Nonetheless, it has been central to false claims that immigrants in the country illegally can vote in New York.

In June 2022, before the law was scheduled to take effect, a New York judge struck it down, saying the measure violated the state constitution’s provision that "every citizen" is entitled to vote. That decision was appealed.

On Feb. 21, a New York appeals court agreed with the lower court’s decision: "We determine that this local law was enacted in violation of the New York State Constitution and Municipal Home Rule Law, and thus, must be declared null and void." 

It is unclear whether the ruling will be appealed again. 

Some cities across the U.S. have passed legislation to allow noncitizens to vote in some municipal elections, but that practice is not widespread

Our ruling

Hannity claimed in New York City "local elections, illegal immigrants can vote."

New York City passed 2021 legislation that would have granted some noncitizens the right to vote in local elections. That law never went into effect and was declared unconstitutional by a state appeals court in February. 

We rate this claim False.

PolitiFact Researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this report.

RELATED: Do ‘illegal immigrants now have the right to vote in New York’? No, that’s False

Our Sources

Internet Archive, Hannity FOX News February 29, 2024 6:00pm-7:00pm PST, Feb. 29, 2024

PolitiFact, Do ‘illegal immigrants now have the right to vote in New York’? No, that’s False, Jan. 19, 2024

Politico, NYC’s non-citizen voting law ruled unconstitutional on appeal, Feb. 21, 2024

PolitiFact, Tucker Carlson feigned ignorance over ‘great replacement theory,’ despite talking about it often, May 19, 2022

PolitiFact, What is the ‘great replacement theory’ linked to the Buffalo shooter? May 16, 2022

PolitiFact, Ramaswamy’s Pants on Fire claim that the Democratic platform includes the ‘great replacement theory,’ Dec. 13, 2023

PolitiFact, Trump's claim that millions of immigrants are signing up to vote illegally is Pants on Fire! Jan. 12, 2024

AdWeek, This Is the Cable News Ratings Report for 2023, Jan. 3, 2024

Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute, 18 U.S. Code § 611 - Voting by aliens, accessed Jan. 18, 2024

New York Times, New York Moves to Allow 800,000 Noncitizens to Vote in Local Elections, Nov. 23, 2021

The Associated Press, Judge says NYC can’t let noncitizens vote in city elections, June 27, 2022

NPR, New York City will allow 800,000 noncitizens to vote in local elections, Dec. 15, 2021

Reuters, New York judge rules law allowing noncitizens to vote for mayor is unconstitutional, June 27, 2022

NY.gov, New York State Constitution, Jan. 1, 2022

Deadline, Fox News Tops February Ratings But MSNBC Shows Year-To-Year Growth; ‘Gutfeld!’ Tops Demo, CNN Sees Gain From ‘United States Of Scandal,’ Feb. 29, 2024

NYCourts.gov, Fossella v Adams - D73920, Feb. 21, 2024

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Sean Hannity is wrong. ‘Illegal immigrants’ cannot vote in New York City’s local elections

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