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# Largely Symbolic: San Francisco Spends $300K To Register Non-citizen Voters
- URL: https://ivn.us/largely-symbolic-san-francisco-spends-300k-to-register-noncitizen-voters/
- Published: 2018-10-29T15:40:22.000Z
- Updated: 2026-06-22T20:04:54.000Z
- Author: Jeff Powers
- Tags: News

San Diego, CALIF.- 49 signups.

That's the result of the City of San Francisco's effort to register non-citizen voters for local board of education races.

The 49 signups come to about $6,326 per sign up.

The program is the first-of-its-kind in California and followed the passage of a 2016 San Francisco [ballot measure](https://ballotpedia.org/San%5FFrancisco,%5FCalifornia,%5FNon-Citizen%5FVoting%5Fin%5FSchool%5FBoard%5FElections%5FAmendment,%5FProposition%5FN%5F%28November%5F2016%29?ref=ivn.us) opening school elections to non-citizens who are over the age of 18, city residents and have children under age 19.

Back in July, the city began registering non-citizens — including undocumented immigrants.

The tab has so far totaled about $310,000 setting up the new registration system and encouraging people to sign up. At the time it was placed on the ballot, the City Controller Ben Rosenfield noted Proposition N would cost an estimated $160,000 per election to print and distribute voting materials, train poll workers and separately register people who would become eligible to vote in School Board elections.

### **Controversial Move**

The effort has been a controversial one.

And one likely to rally conservative voices as the caravans continue their march to the border.

[Shamann Walton](https://shamannwalton.com/?ref=ivn.us) is the San Francisco Unified School District commissioner who introduced the resolution to the school board in support of Measure N in 2016\. She said he doesn’t buy into the "concerned" rhetoric, “At the end of the day, for me, it’s important that families who have children in our school to have a say,” he said.

Robin Hvidston, executive director of [We the People Rising](https://wethepeoplerising.wordpress.com/about/?ref=ivn.us), a group that lobbies for stricter immigration enforcement said of the effort, “Non-citizen voting is a very contentious issue,” Hvidston said. “The move to extend voting rights to those illegally residing in San Francisco has the potential to backfire among citizens with a moderate stance on illegal immigration.”

Travis Allen, the gubernatorial candidate who did not make the top two in June, tweeted the following:

https://twitter.com/JoinTravisAllen/status/1056719833901883398