Census: Over half of Virginia's immigrants are eligible to vote
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A naturalization ceremony at Mount Vernon in 2018. Photo: Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty Images
Most immigrants in Virginia are eligible to vote, according to 2023 Census Bureau data.
Why it matters: Republicans, including former President Trump and Gov. Glenn Youngkin, have peddled unsubstantiated claims that immigrants who aren't citizens are voting in federal elections and influencing outcomes.
Reality check: It's theoretically possible for a non-citizen immigrant to first lie about their citizenship status to register to vote and then commit a federal crime by voting, reports Axios' Stef Kight.
- The few non-citizens who do cast votes typically do so accidentally; most face consequences, regardless of intent.
- The penalties can be severe, including prison time or deportation.
Driving the news: Last weekend, the Department of Justice accused Virginia of purging voters from its rolls too close to Election Day. It's led Republicans to re-amplify the unproven threats of non-citizen voting.
- "Obviously, this was done so that they can CHEAT on the Election. So sad!" Trump posted on Truth Social on Monday.
- On Tuesday, Fairfax Republicans repeated similar claims in a press release.
- None of the three illegal voting cases between Jan. 1, 2022, and July of this year involved citizenship, per the Washington Post.
By the numbers: Over 13% of Virginia's population, or about 1.1 million people, are immigrants, per the Census.
- About 57% are naturalized citizens, compared with 43% who are non-citizens.
Zoom in: More than 113,000 residents in Richmond, Henrico and Chesterfield are naturalized citizens.
- About a third of Richmond's immigrant population, which accounts for 9% of the city, are citizens.
- So are about half of the immigrants in Henrico, which has the area's largest foreign-born population at nearly 53,000 people — or 16% of the county's total residents.
- In Chesterfield, roughly 54% of its foreign-born population have citizenship.
Between the lines: Not all non-citizens are undocumented, per UVA's Weldon Cooper Center.
- They might also be lawful permanent residents, students or workers on temporary visas, and refugees.