By SPEAKIN’ OUT NEWS STAFF
Published November 4, 2025
Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen announced Monday that two Republican lawmakers will sponsor a proposed constitutional amendment requiring all elected state constitutional officers to be natural-born U.S. citizens.
The measure, called the Natural Born Citizen Constitutional Amendment, will be carried by Sen. Donnie Chesteen, R-Geneva, as Senate Bill 21, and by Rep. Rhett Marques, R-Enterprise. Allen’s office described the proposal as “the cornerstone” of his 2026 legislative agenda.
“Only natural-born U.S. citizens should be eligible to serve as constitutional officers in Alabama. This is an Alabama-first priority,” Allen said in a post on X.
Allen compared the proposal to the U.S. Constitution’s requirement that the president be a natural-born citizen.
“We believe the same standard must apply to those operating in the highest levels of our state government,” he said.
Under current law, Alabama requires the governor and lieutenant governor to be U.S. citizens for 10 years before election. Other constitutional officers must be citizens for seven years, and legislators for three.
The proposed amendment would extend those requirements, allowing only natural-born citizens to serve as governor, lieutenant governor, state lawmakers, Supreme Court justices, appellate and circuit judges, and numerous local officials such as sheriffs, district attorneys, and circuit clerks.
If approved during the 2026 legislative session, the amendment would appear on the November 3, 2026, ballot for voter approval.
Allen, who is running for lieutenant governor, called the proposal an effort to “put Alabama first.” Marques, also a congressional candidate, said the plan simply “clarifies what most Alabamians already believe.”