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US News


NON-CITIZEN CHINESE IMMIGRANT IS SWORN IN ON SAN FRANCISCO’S ELECTION COMMISSION

By Melissa Koenig

Published Feb. 21, 2024, 8:30 a.m. ET

A Chinese immigrant has been sworn in to serve on San Francisco’s Election
Commission despite her lack of US citizenship, raising national security
concerns as one US senator warns that Chinese President Xi Jinping is playing
the “long game.”

Kelly Wong, an immigration rights activist who came to the US in 2019 from Hong
Kong for graduate studies, was unanimously appointed by San Francisco’s Board of
Supervisors to the city’s Elections Commission on Feb. 14.

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She is believed to be the first non-citizen ever to sit on the commission, after
California voters approved a measure in 2020 to eliminate the citizenship
requirement to sit on San Francisco boards.

3
Kelly Wong, an immigration rights activist who came to the US in 2019 from Hong
Kong for graduate studies, was unanimously appointed by San Francisco’s Board of
Supervisors to the city’s Elections Commission on Feb. 14. LinkedIn / Mission
Graduates

“There are always voices inside my head, like ‘You can’t do it. You’re not
competent. You’re an immigrant. This is not your country,’” Wong told KQED
following her historic appointment last week.

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“If I can do it, you can do it,” she said.

In her new position, Wong — who cannot legally vote — is one of seven people who
will oversee and implement policy for the Department of Election.

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She will oversee voter registrations, vote-by-mail ballots, voting locations and
election observations.


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“This appointment is a milestone for all immigrant and marginalized communities
throughout San Francisco,” Wong wrote on her now-deleted LinkedIn profile last
Thursday, according to the Epoch Times.

“Representation matters: thousands of immigrants living in the city hold stakes
in politics, and there is no better way to have us be represented than to serve
in leadership positions.

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“I am deeply committed to ensuring that everyone, regardless of immigration
status, has a seat at the table in shaping the future of our city,” she added.

Wong said she hopes to increase voting engagement among immigrants and those who
do not speak English.

3
Wong said she hopes to increase voting engagement among immigrants and those who
do not speak English. KTSF26

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“Even though I’m fluent in English, I still encounter challenges in navigating a
new system, let alone participating in political conversation and activities,”
she told KQED.

But because the position is unpaid, Wong is also planning to continue her work
with the advocacy group Chinese for Affirmative Action — a non-governmental
organization founded in 1969.

Its mission is to protect the “civil and political rights of Chinese Americans
and to advance multiracial democracy in the United States,” according to its
website.

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The group was previously responsible for lobbying the government to change the
law to allow non-citizens to vote in San Francisco school board elections if
their children attend a school in the district.

3
Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) warned that Chinese President Xi Jinping is playing
the “long game” in an interview with Fox Business’ Maria Bartiromo. Fox News

But Wong’s appointment to the elections board has some around the country
concerned about China’s increasing influence, with Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.)
warning that President Xi Jinping is playing the “long game” after 452 Chinese
migrants were caught at the southern border in just the past three days, per
Customs and Border Protection data.

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“Look, they’re flooding our borders with fentanyl, killing Americans,” he told
Fox Business’ Maria Bartiromo on Tuesday.

“China is playing the long game here,” the Republican said, arguing that the
Chinese have “completely populated the spaces that people make decisions,
including the White House.

“This is how civilizations, you know, ultimately lose their way — and the idea
of having an open border where anybody can come from anywhere without asking any
questions is nuts,” Schmitt continued.

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What do you think? Post a comment.

“We need to do everything we can right now to sort of hold Mayorkas responsible
and [President] Joe Biden responsible,” he said, referring to Homeland Security
Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, whom the House of Representatives impeached last
week.

The Post has reached out to the Elections Commission and the San Francisco
Mayor’s Office for comment.


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