Rep. Hamadeh proposes dual-citizenship question for census; Sen. Moreno introduces Exclusive Citizenship Act of 2025

By Zachery Schmidt
The Center Square

U.S. Rep. Abe Hamadeh, R-Arizona, introduced a bill that would add a dual citizenship question to the U.S. Census.

The census is conducted every 10 years and helps to reshape congressional districts across the country.

The Arizona congressman told The Center Square that the Make Allegiances Clear Again Act, which he introduced last week, is “a long overdue reform of our nation’s census system.”

“You cannot fix a breach in national security if you refuse to look at it. The MACA Act ends what seems to be our willful ignorance and finally treats sovereignty as a serious question,” Hamadeh said, answering The Center Square's questions by email. “Once we know the full scope of the problem, we can close loopholes that allow malign foreign actors to influence our domestic policy.”

Under current Department of State policy, U.S. citizens are not required to choose between American and a foreign country’s citizenship. Americans can naturalize in other countries without risking loss of their American citizenship.

But Hamadeh said other countries don’t compare to America and that “no other country should be competing for a U.S. citizen’s loyalty.”

“The American people deserve clarity on divided allegiances — especially at a time when global threats are growing. We are simply asking for honesty,” the representative noted.

 Citizenship is a covenant, not a travel convenience," Hamadeh told The Center Square.

“We have Americans who pledge allegiance to the United States on Tuesday and vote in a foreign election on Wednesday. That is fundamentally incompatible with a sovereign republic,” he said.

U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, went a step farther by introducing the Exclusive Citizenship Act of 2025. Under this bill, U.S. citizens could not be citizens of another nation.

Moreno, who is originally from Colombia, said becoming an American citizen at 18 was “one of the greatest honors” of his life. The senator added that being a U.S. citizen is “an honor and a privilege.”

“If you want to be an American, it’s all or nothing. It’s time to end dual citizenship for good,” he said.

Hamadeh noted his bill “works naturally alongside” Moreno’s legislation.

“We are done with the era where American citizenship is treated as an insurance policy by people whose hearts belong to another country. It is all or nothing,” Hamadeh said.

The representative said the U.S. Census lumps “illegal aliens, guest workers, dual nationals and loyal American citizens into the same generic population buckets.”

Americans need to know if they are “sending billions in federal tax dollars to subsidize enclaves where the majority of the population holds allegiance to a foreign flag,” he said.

Hamadeh told The Center Square that Americans “have the right to adjust their checkbooks accordingly,” if data shows specific “congressional districts are effectively outposts for other nations.”

Regarding legal challenges, Hamadeh said he is “on firm legal ground” with this bill.

“The Constitution is crystal clear: Congress has the absolute authority under Article I to direct the census,” he said.

Hamadeh noted if activist judges decide to “legislate from the bench,” he welcomes the fight. He called it a battle he would win.

* * *

••• Publisher's note: A free press is critical to having well-informed voters and citizens. While some news organizations opt for paid websites or costly paywalls, The Highland County Press has maintained a free newspaper and website for the last 26 years for our community. If you would like to contribute to this service – and want it to continue – it would be greatly appreciated. Donations to help offset ever-rising expenses may be made to: The Highland County Press, P.O. Box 849, Hillsboro, Ohio 45133. Please include "for website" on the memo line.