New-citizenship wave rises

MONTEBELLO — Ernesto Alonso came to the United States 20 years ago, alone and looking for work — and a better life. Over the years, he bounced around from job to job as he tried to make ends meet. But the North Hollywood resident never made becoming a citizen a priority until this presidential election.

"I'm becoming a citizen because I want to vote," Alonso said Thursday as his wife, Irene, and 9-year-old son, Miguel, stood by him during a citizenship ceremony at a Montebello banquet hall. "I want to be part of this country."

Alonso, 39, is part of a rising wave of Latino immigrants eager to become citizens and get involved in the political process. On Thursday, he was among about 3,600 people who waved miniature U.S. flags and recited the Pledge of Allegiance during a series of ceremonies in Montebello.

New citizens also sang the national anthem, watched a welcoming video by President Bush and listened to Lee Greenwood's "Proud to be an American."

Alonso is part of a changing political dynamic of Mexican nationals, wielding increasing political clout, that could become an important factor in the United States presidential race.

Last month's citizenship ceremony at the Los Angeles Convention Center drew 18,000, and the biggest group, with more than 7,700 people, represented Mexico.

The University of Southern California's Tomas Rivera Policy Institute found that more Latinos are becoming naturalized for several reasons, most notably this year's election.

"It's not a question of who will get the Hispanic vote, but what percentage of the Latino vote will (Republican Sen. John) McCain get," said Harry Pachon, the institute's president and a professor of public policy at USC. "One thing we forget about in this discussion is that 30(percent) to 40percent of legal immigrants in the past 30 to 40 years have been from south of the border."

Latino voters increase

Some 9 million Hispanics will be able to cast ballots in the November election, a 23 percent increase since 2004, Pachon said. And since the 1980s, the naturalization rate has increased 10 times within the Mexican immigrant population, he noted.
While numbers for 2008 won't be available until later this year, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services officials say there already is a backlog of prospective citizens, and there is anecdotal evidence of an increase.

"For brand-new citizens, we go out and provide the ability t0 sign up to vote," said Loretta Uriarte, an Obama campaign volunteer in North Hollywood. "It's important to welcome them into the process and include them."

Bilingual volunteers, eager to communicate with Spanish-speaking citizens, will be among those who attend events in North Hollywood Park reaching out to new voters, Uriarte said. The next event is set for Sunday, she said.

Obama has been shoring up his support with Latino voters after Sen. Hillary Clinton's departure from the race earlier this month. Clinton won roughly 2-to-1 among Hispanic voters against Obama in the primaries, according to the Pew Hispanic Center's analysis.

McCain trying, too

McCain hopes to pick up some votes from former Clinton supporters in the Latino community as well.
"Sen. McCain has a long relationship with Latinos," said Hessy Fernandez, a spokeswoman for the campaign. "He's traveled to states such as California, where there are large Latino populations. During the Republican primaries, he got the Latino vote in contrast to the other Republican candidates."

Both sides will be looking to sway voters like Erika Rodriguez, 34, of Glendale, who became a citizen Thursday, something she had put off since moving to the United States illegally at 15.

"I'm proud of who I am and where I came from," said Rodriguez, a restaurant manager. "The first thing I want to do is go celebrate."

Alonso already was holding a passport application he received moments before he became a citizen. He also planned to go to the voter-registration table after the ceremony.

"It was my dream to be a citizen," said Alonso, who added that he's leaning toward Obama. "It's not easy. You have to do a lot of things, but when you get there, you feel good."

Written By:
Justino Águila, Daily News L.A.