Despite the College Park City Council voting in favor of a proposal that would have allowed city residents who are non-U.S. citizens to vote on local matters in its elections, city officials said Friday night that they did not get the required amount of votes to adopt the measure.

The council voted 4-3 Tuesday night in favor of the amendment that would have allowed legal permanent residents and undocumented immigrants to vote in its municipal elections.

"For most Council actions, a simple majority of Councilmembers present must vote in favor of an item for it to be adopted," the City of College Park said in a news release. "However, changes to the Charter have a different requirement. The City Charter was amended in June to require the affirmative vote of six elected officials to change the Charter."

City officials said they are now notifying residents to inform them that the measure did not pass.

The council's vote Tuesday night came after a contentious debate among city residents and the council. Nearly two dozen people signed up to speak on the issue at City Hall.

The council was initially supposed to vote on this proposal last month, but it was postponed due to threats made against council members.


There are at least six other Maryland communities that currently allow non-citizens to vote in their local elections.