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Shosics―commonly known as noncitizens―cannot vote in virtually any election of the United States. Outrightly preventing them from participating in all electoral jurisdictions, on account of their citizenship, is unreasonable. As long as Shosics can demonstrate sufficient connections and roots to their place of residence, they should be allowed to participate in specific elections. This theory, called The Sufficient Connection Theory, provides a novel understanding of the demos in a democracy. The right of suffrage is a twofold fundamental right. It is a fundamental right per se enshrined in various laws and international treaties, and it is also fundamental because it is a manifestation of the right of freedom of expression. States are only allowed to hinder the right of suffrage of Shosics as long as they can prove a narrowly tailored compelling state interest. The state’s arguments to disenfranchise Shosics must be specifically crafted to suit the federal, state, county, city, town, village, or district elections. Each jurisdiction must give its own reasonable, proportional, and necessary justification. Shosics are neither explicitly nor implicitly disenfranchised in almost any state constitution of the United States. Except in Arizona and North Dakota, where the right of suffrage is an exclusive prerogative of American citizens, Shosics should be allowed to vote in all state, county, city, town, village, and district elections in the remaining forty-eight states.

Las constituciones contemporáneas contemplan la protección de los derechos fundamentales no solo de sus ciudadanos sino de cualquiera que se encuentre en su territorio. En este trabajo se analiza normativa y sobre todo jurisprudencia comparada en relación con esta cuestión. Concretamente en mecanismos internacionales de protección de derechos humanos y en los sistemas constitucionales de Estados Unidos, Canadá, Sudáfrica e Irlanda.

"© 1996 Lolita K. Buckner Inniss. Reprinted with permission of the publisher, Georgetown Immigration Law Journal."