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 News from Around the Americas | July 2005 
Mexico Extends Vote to Migrants
 Fernando Quintero & Hector Gutierrez - Rocky Mountain News
| Mail-in ballot law opens '06 election to citizens living in U.S. To participate, a person must:
• Have a Mexican voter registration card.
• Request a mail ballot from Mexico's Federal Electoral Institute between Oct. 1, 2005, and Jan. 15, 2006.
• Return a ballot between April 2 and June 30, 2006. |
Francisco Almanza never voted in his native Mexico. Then he moved to the United States, where he got a taste of democracy, American-style.
Now, after 34 years as a U.S. resident, Almanza and millions of other Mexican nationals and Americans with dual citizenship, will have the opportunity to help pick the next president of Mexico.
A bill signed into law by President Vicente Fox on June 30 allows mail-in voting in the July 2006 presidential election for an estimated 11 million Mexican migrants, most of them in the United States.
Although many observers applaud the idea, others worry that the process could be hobbled by fraud or apathy.
Almanza, owner of Taqueria Patzcuaro restaurant in north Denver, said he didn't vote when he was younger because he felt betrayed by a Mexican government that was both corrupt and unresponsive to the plight of the poor.
But Almanza, who has dual citizenship, said he plans to vote next July because his faith in democracy has been restored after witnessing U.S. elections.
"There's a difference voting here," he said.
The mail-in ballot decision came after years of intense debate in Mexico. Some politicians feared that ballots sent through the mail might be stolen or altered, or might never arrive because of Mexico's antiquated postal service. In the end, lawmakers gave in to pressure from immigrant activists who argued that Mexico owed a debt to citizens living abroad.
More than 10 percent of the population born in Mexico live in the United States. Many send money to help their families and to fund public works projects in their home communities.
Gonzalo Garcia, head of the Denver chapter of the Federation of Zacatecas, a national group of former citizens from the state of Zacatecas, called the landmark legislation good news.
"We feel there's finally acknowledgment of the work we do and the sacrifices we make for our people and our country," said Garcia, whose group has helped fund a number of public infrastructure and other projects in Zacatecas.
Still, he fears many Mexican migrants who are eligible to vote simply won't bother.
"Too many of us won't be interested in voting because of public apathy, largely due to distrust in the government after so many years of corruption."
To participate in the election, people with a Mexican voter identification card must mail a request for a ballot to the Federal Electoral Institute between Oct. 1, 2005, and Jan. 15, 2006. After receiving an absentee ballot in the mail, a voter must return it between April 2 and June 30, 2006.
There is some confusion - and skepticism - over how the system will work.
"Mail service in Mexico is a nightmare. There are systems that need to be put in place in a fairly short amount of time. This will certainly put the government bureaucracy to task," said Estevan Flores, executive director of the Latino Research and Policy Center in Denver.
Garcia said a public awareness campaign is necessary to inform people about the voting process.
"We need to promote this. We're not well informed. There is a lot of confusion. Is there still time to register to vote? Do we have to go back to Mexico to register? Will we be able to get ballots from the Mexican consulate?"
A spokeswoman for the Mexican consulate in Denver said there is no official word yet on what role consulates will play. There are an estimated 500,000 Mexican immigrants across the consulate's region, which includes Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Nebraska, Idaho, South Dakota, North Dakota and Montana.
Mexico's Federal Electoral Institute estimates that 4 million people living in the U.S. have the necessary voter identification cards, but only 10 percent are expected to participate in the July 2, 2006, election.
Critics say the new system excludes many potential voters - particularly, illegal immigrants who lack voter cards and are reluctant to leave the country to obtain one because of stronger border patrol enforcement.
That's why Omar Gonzalez, a Fort Lupton farm worker from Michoacan who has not been home in three years, won't be voting.
"It's too difficult, too risky to go (to Mexico) and come back," he said. "It's not worth it."
U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., a leading critic of illegal immigration, is opposed to people with dual citizenship participating in the Mexican election.
"It's a de facto way of surrendering one's citizenship in the United States. I believe that if you vote in another country's elections, you should give up your citizenship or it should be taken away."
He added, "You could find yourself in a situation in which your country is in a confrontation with the United States. Then the question becomes: What side are you on? Who do you owe your allegiance to?"
But Flores sees the voting plan as a way for Mexicans living overseas to retain a tie to their homeland.
"I think it's a great idea," he said. "It provides a practical link to the homeland and gives them a reason to stay politically involved."
Participation in Mexican elections
Mexican citizens living abroad can vote in next year's presidential election. Details of the plan are still being worked out. To participate, a person must:
• Have a Mexican voter registration card.
• Request a mail ballot from Mexico's Federal Electoral Institute between Oct. 1, 2005, and Jan. 15, 2006.
• Return a ballot between April 2 and June 30, 2006. |
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