Kentucky voters approved an amendment to the state Constitution that further prohibits people who are not U.S. citizens from voting in Kentucky elections on Tuesday.?

Amendment 1 specifies, “No person who is not a citizen of the United States shall be allowed to vote in this state.” It will be added to the Constitution at the end of a paragraph that says “every citizen of the United States” may vote in their local precinct if they meet residency and other requirements.?

According to unofficial results, 64% of voters cast ballots in favor of it — the same margin of votes that defeated Amendment 2, which was also on the ballot and would have allowed the General Assembly to fund nonpublic schools.?

The campaign for Amendment 1 had a much lower profile than Amendment 2, as no issue committees filed to raise dollars for or against the measure. The sponsor of the legislation for Amendment 1, Sen. Jason Howell, R-Murray, told the Kentucky Lantern in a previous interview the amendment is a “proactive” measure to protect election integrity.?

After a Lexington rally before early voting began, Beshear told reporters Amendment 1 was “a cynical attempt, I think, to just try to turn out or gin up more people.”?

“It’s already illegal to vote if you’re not a citizen,” Beshear said.