New US Citizens Look Forward to Voting
2020-08-16
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1Brenda Cienfuegos recently became a United States citizen.
2Now, she is eager to exercise her new rights as an American.
3Born in El Salvador, Cienfuegos came legally to the U.S. in 2010.
4She registered to vote right after her U.S. citizenship ceremony in Pennsylvania earlier this year.
5The mother of two told VOA that voting gives Latinos like her a voice.
6Cienfuegos demurred when asked which candidate she plans to support in the November presidential election.
7"Like I learned in my country, my vote is secret," she said.
8"But what can I tell you? I'm going to support the candidate who better supports the Latino community."
9Cienfuegos is part of a growing cohort of new citizens taking part in the country's democratic process.
10U.S. Census records suggest that more than 23 million naturalized citizens will be able to vote in the 2020 elections.
11The Pew Research Center says that represents about 10 percent of the electorate.
12The political power of naturalized Americans is recognized by many different political groups.
13Mike Madrid is cofounder of the Lincoln Project, a political action committee of Republican Party activists who oppose President Donald Trump.
14Madrid says that naturalized citizens "have a greater likelihood to vote" than native-born citizens.
15He added that they are "a much more pro-immigrant voting bloc, being immigrants themselves."
16Supporters of Trump say they, too, are reaching out to Americans born in other lands.
17"We recognized the importance of engaging every American citizen ..., including those who are naturalized citizens," said Yali Nuñez, the Republican National Committee's Director of Hispanic Media.
18The Pew Research Center reports that Latinos and Asians make up nearly two-thirds of new citizens who can vote this year.
19Pew found that 53 percent of naturalized Latinos and 52 percent of naturalized Asians voted in 2016.
20That is compared to 46 percent of native-born Latinos and 45 percent of native-born Asians.
21The top countries from which new voters originated are Mexico, the Philippines, India and China.
22In North Carolina, Juliana Cabrales is with the NALEO Educational Fund, a nonpartisan group that supports Latino civic activities.
23She says political parties need to continue communicating with new Americans all the time, not just in election years.
24In the past, parties would "take Latinos for granted, as never voting or always voting one way," Cabrales said.
25"As an organization, we actively ask political parties to engage Latinos."
26Cabrales noted that presidential campaigns actively reach out to new Americans in politically competitive states, but often overlook them in the rest of the country.
27She said: "Latinos that live in California, in New York, in Texas are often forgotten..."
28Opinion surveys and information from recent elections suggest that immigrant voters often support Democratic Party candidates.
29That does not surprise some Republicans.
30Brendan Steinhauser is a Texas-based Republican adviser.
31He told VOA that some statements by top party officials have caused people to think that Republicans do not welcome immigrants even if they come legally to the United States.
32Steinhauser has worked for Texas Republican Senator John Cornyn.
33He said Cornyn has regularly sent aides to attend naturalization ceremonies in Texas.
34Steinhauser said the senator received a lot of support from Hispanic voters.
35He added that, in the future, appealing to new citizens will be important for the two main political parties.
36He said that parties will have to appeal to many different groups across America.
37"A party that doesn't do that will not have a future in this country," he said.
38I'm Mario Ritter, Jr.
1Brenda Cienfuegos recently became a United States citizen. Now, she is eager to exercise her new rights as an American. 2Born in El Salvador, Cienfuegos came legally to the U.S. in 2010. She registered to vote right after her U.S. citizenship ceremony in Pennsylvania earlier this year. 3The mother of two told VOA that voting gives Latinos like her a voice. 4Cienfuegos demurred when asked which candidate she plans to support in the November presidential election. 5"Like I learned in my country, my vote is secret," she said. "But what can I tell you? I'm going to support the candidate who better supports the Latino community." 6Cienfuegos is part of a growing cohort of new citizens taking part in the country's democratic process. U.S. Census records suggest that more than 23 million naturalized citizens will be able to vote in the 2020 elections. The Pew Research Center says that represents about 10 percent of the electorate. 7The political power of naturalized Americans is recognized by many different political groups. 8Mike Madrid is cofounder of the Lincoln Project, a political action committee of Republican Party activists who oppose President Donald Trump. Madrid says that naturalized citizens "have a greater likelihood to vote" than native-born citizens. He added that they are "a much more pro-immigrant voting bloc, being immigrants themselves." 9Supporters of Trump say they, too, are reaching out to Americans born in other lands. 10"We recognized the importance of engaging every American citizen ..., including those who are naturalized citizens," said Yali Nuñez, the Republican National Committee's Director of Hispanic Media. 11Naturalized citizens highly likely to vote 12The Pew Research Center reports that Latinos and Asians make up nearly two-thirds of new citizens who can vote this year. 13Pew found that 53 percent of naturalized Latinos and 52 percent of naturalized Asians voted in 2016. That is compared to 46 percent of native-born Latinos and 45 percent of native-born Asians. 14The top countries from which new voters originated are Mexico, the Philippines, India and China. 15In North Carolina, Juliana Cabrales is with the NALEO Educational Fund, a nonpartisan group that supports Latino civic activities. She says political parties need to continue communicating with new Americans all the time, not just in election years. 16In the past, parties would "take Latinos for granted, as never voting or always voting one way," Cabrales said. "As an organization, we actively ask political parties to engage Latinos." 17Cabrales noted that presidential campaigns actively reach out to new Americans in politically competitive states, but often overlook them in the rest of the country. 18She said: "Latinos that live in California, in New York, in Texas are often forgotten..." 19Appealing to many 20Opinion surveys and information from recent elections suggest that immigrant voters often support Democratic Party candidates. That does not surprise some Republicans. 21Brendan Steinhauser is a Texas-based Republican adviser. He told VOA that some statements by top party officials have caused people to think that Republicans do not welcome immigrants even if they come legally to the United States. 22Steinhauser has worked for Texas Republican Senator John Cornyn. He said Cornyn has regularly sent aides to attend naturalization ceremonies in Texas. 23Steinhauser said the senator received a lot of support from Hispanic voters. He added that, in the future, appealing to new citizens will be important for the two main political parties. 24He said that parties will have to appeal to many different groups across America. 25"A party that doesn't do that will not have a future in this country," he said. 26I'm Mario Ritter, Jr. 27Aline Barros reported this story for VOA News. Mario Ritter Jr. adapted it for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 28______________________________________________________________ 29Words in This Story 30eager - adj. very interested 31demur - v. to refuse a request 32cohort - n. a group of people who have something in common 33bloc - n. a group of people connected by common goals 34originate - v. to have a beginning; to create 35non-partisan - adj. free from party or political ties 36take...for granted - v. (phrasal) to believe something is true without knowing that is the case