Hundreds of thousands of today’s Hispanic immigrants through the U.S., including in Maryland, have decided to apply for citizenship. The increasing number of immigrants interested in citizenship is causing the number of eligible voters who are Hispanic to reach record heights. In fact, the electorate of Hispanics is expected to increase to more than a whopping 27 million people this year.
One main reason for the growth in the number of eligible voters among Hispanics is that millions of Hispanics who were born in the U.S. are now reaching voting age. Another large driver is naturalization among Hispanics. Over a million immigrants who are living in the U.S. legally became naturalized from 2012 to 2016.
President Barack Obama’s administration is currently in the middle of a major push to promote citizenship to refugees and immigrants as the 2016 election draws near. A task force is driving many new initiatives that aim to ensure that immigrants have the encouragement, tools and support needed to apply for U.S. citizenship. City officials and librarians are even being trained to help immigrants apply.
Applying for U.S. citizenship can be both exciting and a bit overwhelming. This is because some things in a person’s record might cause his or her naturalization application to be denied — for instance, getting a green card through illegal means or leaving the US for extended periods of time. Appropriate legal guidance may help permanent, non-citizen residents in Maryland navigate the rigorous procedures to finally gain U.S. citizenship via naturalization.
Source: dailycaller.com, “Naturalization Major Drivier In Surge Of Hispanic Voters“, Rachel Stoltzfoos, Jan. 19, 2016