Rep. Nancy Mace has introduced a constitutional amendment that would prevent naturalized American citizens from serving in Congress, joining the federal judiciary, or holding powerful government positions requiring Senate confirmation.
The South Carolina Republican submitted House Joint Resolution 188 on May 20, 2026. Rather than creating an ordinary federal law, the resolution seeks to rewrite the Constitution by extending the “natural born citizen” requirement beyond the presidency.
Mace argues that people entrusted with national authority should have an unquestionable allegiance to the United States. Critics counter that her proposal would divide Americans into separate classes based on how they obtained citizenship.
The distinction is enormous. Naturalized citizens take the same oath of allegiance, vote in the same elections, and carry many of the same legal responsibilities as citizens born in the United States. Mace’s amendment would nevertheless permanently disqualify them from several of the country’s most influential positions.
What the Proposed Amendment Would Change
House Joint Resolution 188 states that anyone who is not a natural-born citizen would be prohibited from serving as a representative or senator. It would impose the same restriction on Supreme Court justices, lower federal judges, ambassadors, public ministers, consuls and other federal officers requiring Senate approval.
The proposal therefore reaches beyond elected lawmakers. Federal judges and most senior executive officials are appointed, not elected.
It also does not cover every political office in the United States. The text does not establish a nationwide birthplace requirement for governors, mayors, state lawmakers, county officials or other state and local officeholders.
Under the existing Constitution, House members must be at least 25 years old, have held U.S. citizenship for seven years and live in the state they represent. Senators must be at least 30, have been citizens for nine years and reside in their states. Neither chamber currently requires citizenship from birth.
Only the president and vice president must be natural-born citizens under the Constitution.
“If you hold power in the American government, you should be a natural born American citizen,” Mace said while announcing the resolution. She argued that lawmakers, judges and federal representatives should owe their loyalty exclusively to the United States.
If ratified, the restrictions on House members would begin on January 3 of the first odd-numbered year following ratification. The restriction would apply to senators after their elected terms ended. Federal judges and Senate-confirmed officers would become subject to the rule six months after ratification.
Critics Say Citizenship Should Not Have Two Levels
Mace promoted the amendment by pointing to several foreign-born Democratic lawmakers, particularly Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar, who was born in Somalia and became an American citizen after arriving in the United States as a refugee.
However, the amendment’s language is not limited to one party, nationality or individual. It would affect any naturalized citizen seeking the covered positions, including Republicans elected by conservative voters.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, a Washington Democrat born in India, condemned the proposal as discriminatory. Jayapal became a U.S. citizen in 2000 and described her naturalization ceremony as one of the most meaningful experiences of her life.
“This is also insulting to the hundreds of thousands of constituents who elected naturalized citizens into office,” Jayapal said. She called on lawmakers from both parties to oppose the measure.
Her criticism strikes at the central controversy surrounding Mace’s proposal. Naturalization is the legal process through which qualified immigrants become citizens after completing federal requirements and taking an oath of allegiance.
The Constitution gives Congress authority to establish naturalization rules. Federal law has also long recognized different paths through which people born outside the country can obtain citizenship, including citizenship at birth through American parents.
That creates an important complication. “Natural born citizen” does not necessarily mean someone physically born on American soil. Congressional constitutional guidance notes that people born abroad to American parents have generally been considered natural-born citizens under certain circumstances.
Mace’s amendment would therefore primarily exclude people who became citizens through naturalization rather than every American born abroad.
The Proposal Faces a Nearly Impossible Political Climb
The resolution was referred to the House Judiciary Committee after its introduction. As of August 3, it had not been approved by the House or sent to the states for ratification.
Passing it would require far more than a normal congressional majority. A proposed constitutional amendment must receive two-thirds support in both the House and Senate. It must then be ratified by three-fourths of the states. The president does not sign constitutional amendments.
Mace’s resolution also gives states seven years to complete ratification.
That demanding process has produced only 27 ratified amendments in American history. It means Mace would need overwhelming national support across party lines, congressional chambers and state governments.
The amendment may face long odds, but it has already forced a deeper argument into public view. Mace presents birthplace and citizenship at birth as safeguards against divided allegiance. Opponents argue that loyalty should be measured through conduct, public service and respect for the Constitution rather than a person’s country of birth.
At the heart of the dispute is a question larger than one congressional resolution: When an immigrant completes the legal process of becoming an American, should that citizenship carry nearly equal political rights, or should birthplace permanently limit how far that citizen can serve?
Mace has offered her answer. Congress and the states appear far from accepting it.
