US lawmaker seeks ban on foreign-born Congressmen, judges

A US lawmaker's proposal to prohibit naturalised citizens from serving in Congress, becoming federal judges and holding Senate-confirmed positions was slammed by Democrats as “hateful” and “rooted in racism”. In a statement posted on social media, the representative for South Carolina's 1st congressional district, Nancy Mace, said she introduced a "long overdue joint resolution" for the constitutional amendment. "This is the very same standard the president and vice president are already required to meet," she noted.Mace singled out three Democrats born in foreign countries as she made the case for the constitutional amendment.

Ilhan Omar. Shri Thanedar. Pramila Jayapal. All born in foreign countries, none were citizens by birth. All sitting in the United States Congress. All making clear every single day their loyalty is not to America.

We just introduced a long overdue joint resolution proposing a… pic.twitter.com/jTTKyr5Sgb

— Rep. Nancy Mace (@RepNancyMace) May 20, 2026

The move by Mace, though targeted at Democratic lawmakers, could affect more than a dozen members of Congress, including a few Republicans. "This is not complicated. The people writing America's laws, confirming America's judges, and representing America on the world stage should have one loyalty: America. Not Somalia. Not any other country," Mace said, in a reference to Omar, the Democrat from Minnesota known for her left-leaning views and often the target of conservatives.
The president and vice president are already required to be natural born citizens, and the amendment moved by Mace extends the requirement to Representatives, Senators, federal judges at every level, and all Senate-confirmed officers, including Ambassadors and public Ministers. Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici underlined that there are 26 Congress members, including Republicans, who were born in other countries, but Mace only targeted three Democrats who are "progressive people of colour". "This is racist and hateful," she said, calling on Mace to withdraw her statement and "check her conscience".