House of Representatives passes Edwards’ bill to only include U.S. citizens in congressional representation

Today the U.S. House of Representatives voted for and passed U.S. Congressman Chuck Edwards’ (NC-11) bill, the Equal Representation Act, by a vote of 206-202.

Edwards spoke on the House floor to highlight the need to protect America’s democracy and electoral integrity by making sure that only American citizens are counted when apportioning congressional seats and, consequently, Electoral College votes.

Edwards’ full remarks as prepared for delivery are below, or you may watch online here.

"One of the lesser acknowledged, but equally alarming, side effects of this administration’s failure to secure the southern border is the illegal immigrant population’s influence in America’s electoral process.

"Our democracy depends on accurate representation and electoral integrity. Voting is a coveted privilege held by American citizens, and elected representatives are responsible for serving the interests of the voters in their district.

"But even if not a single illegal alien casts a vote, the mere presence of illegal immigrants in the U.S. is having a profound impact on the outcome of elections, skewing the representation of Americans.

"Mr. Biggs points out that the U.S. Constitution mandates that a census be carried out every ten years, where everyone who is present in the United States, regardless of their citizenship and immigration status, is counted. But the Constitution does not specify whether noncitizens or illegal aliens must be counted for the purpose of apportioning House seats.

"You may recall that in 2016, President Trump - through executive order - added a citizenship question back to the 2020 census. The same question that had been legally asked on every census since 1820, until it was removed in 1960 - not because there was anything found wrong with the question, but because the effect of illegal immigration was negligible at the time. But there’s no doubt today, that the effect of illegal immigration is significant. I won’t waste my time making that case – we all know it. It’s a top concern of about 70% of all Americans.

"Though commonsense dictates that only citizens should be counted for apportionment purposes, illegal aliens have nonetheless recently been counted toward the final tallies that determine how many House seats each state is allocated and the number of electoral votes it will wield in presidential elections.

"And since the illegal alien population is not evenly distributed throughout the nation, American citizens in some states are losing representation in Congress to illegal aliens in other states.

"A 2019 study by the Center for Immigration Studies estimates illegal immigrants and non-citizens who have not naturalized and do not have the right to vote impact the distribution of 26 House seats.

"My bill, the Equal Representation Act, would finally address this alarming undermining of American democracy by requiring a citizenship question be added back to the 2030 census, creating reporting requirements for data gathered from the citizenship question, and requiring that only U.S. citizens be counted for the purpose of congressional apportionment.

"Mr. Speaker, this bill will no doubt draw criticism from those who don’t want to fix the problem – and who seek to gain political influence by not fixing it. They will claim to have become experts on our Constitution. They will point to the word 'persons' in Section 2 of the 14th Amendment as a reason why this bill should not pass. But this word carries no definition in our Constitution, and it offers multiple different meanings in current law.

"Allow me to argue. In 1992, Franklin v Massachusetts – a Supreme Court case on apportionment of representatives – opined the term 'persons' to mean an individual who not only has a physical presence, but some element of allegiance to a particular place.

"The Census Bureau does not include foreigners who visit the U.S. for a vacation or a business trip in the population count, since they have no political or legal allegiance to any state or the federal government. Similarly, illegal aliens who are deportable have no allegiance or enduring tie to the U.S.

"Foreigners here on visas have an allegiance politically and legally to their home countries, not to the U.S. So, the same logic applies to them.

"Further, in the 2008 Supreme Court case District of Columbia v. Heller, the justices defined ‘the people’ to mean all members of the U.S. political community.

"To be a member of a political community, you must be an eligible voter.

"Illegal immigrants and non-citizens are not eligible voters.

"Let me also point out that the explicit question of whether apportionment must include aliens under our Constitution has never been ruled on by the U.S. Supreme Court.

"Enacting this legislation into law is vitally important to ensuring that the American people receive fair representation in Congress and that they - and only they - determine the outcomes of presidential elections.

"Our lawless immigration system is already shaking the confidence of the American people in countless ways. Without reforms to how our Census is conducted, confidence in the integrity of our electoral system could be eroded entirely in the coming decade.

"My bill is a commonsense solution to a chronic problem impacting the very governance and democracy of this country, and I ask that my colleagues vote in support."