Mexico Pledges To Give Vote To Citizens Living Abroad By 2006...

Associated Press / SFGate

[RCW2001]

CELESTE TARRICONE, Associated Press Writer
Thursday, March 14, 2002
©2002 Associated Press

URL: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2002/03/14/international2043EST6832.DTL

(03-14) 17:43 PST MEXICO CITY (AP) --

The Mexican government on Thursday launched a new Binational Commission on Voting Abroad, reiterating its commitment to give the vote to Mexican expatriates by the 2006 presidential election.

Juan Hernandez, director of President Vicente Fox's Office of Mexicans Abroad, said his department will establish a task force of Mexicans and Mexican-Americans to put together a proposal for a foreign voting system.

"We need to find a way for Mexicans abroad to vote. They have the right to it," Hernandez said. "They're providing billions of dollars to this country, and they want to participate in their homeland."

The details for such a voting mechanism abroad still need to be worked out, and they also would have to be approved by the Mexican Congress.

In 1996, Congress approved a law giving Mexicans living abroad the right to vote, but failed to create a system to carry out such voting.

The task force will consider options including a traditional balloting system administered by Mexican consulates, electronic voting booths, and voting by email, Hernandez said.

The 1996 law also is murky about who is eligible to vote. For example, it's unclear whether Mexicans who become foreign citizens may still cast ballots.

"Congress will have to decide," Hernandez said. "There are differences of opinion."

Mexican activists in the United States hailed the administration's effort Thursday as a strong first step.

"We have a lot of Mexicans living abroad who are worried about their political participation, and the representation of immigrants in the government. We want a rapid solution to this," said Luis de la Garza, president of the Dallas-based National Council of Mexican Professionals and Businessmen.

The activists were in Mexico City for a three-day conference on the rights of Mexicans living abroad.

When Fox won the 2000 presidential election, ending 71 years of rule by the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, he pledged to make voting rights for Mexicans living abroad a top priority.

Many PRI officials had been reluctant to see Mexicans abroad voting because the expatriates tended to overwhelmingly support other parties.

But now, Hernandez said, all of Mexico's major political parties have expressed interest in setting up a voting system abroad.

About 10 million Mexicans live in other countries -- 8 million in the United States alone -- and constitute about 14 percent of all Mexicans of voting age, according to the independent Federal Electoral Institute.

Only about 1.5 million of them are registered voters.

But when the foreign voting system is put in place, it will not be difficult to get more Mexicans living abroad to register, Fernandez said.

"As soon as this is passed, everyone will know about it very quickly because of the great interest."

[RCW2001]

Dear God in Heaven...

[Texas_Jarhead]

OOh man.. all I can muster..

[ATOMIC_PUNK]

.....................@%$#^$#$%*()%^~!@!~

[Willie Green]

I wonder if they'll provide ballots printed in English.

[El Gato]

Do y'all object to Americans living abroad voting absentee in our elections? Same kind of deal. Just as long as the Mexican, Canadian or Japanese citizens living here don't vote in our elections, what's to beef about? Especially if it hurts the maximally corrupt PRI party.

[F16Fighter]

"What's to beef about?"

Simple irony my friend.

[Bob J]

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[DLfromthedesert]

Maybe we can send Carol Roberts down there to help them.

[ATOMIC_PUNK]

thats not the point if their going to be american CITIZENS they should not be able to vote in a mexican election duel citizenship needs to stop you either are an american or a mexican working in america

About 10 million Mexicans live in other countries -- 8 million in the United States alone -- and constitute about 14 percent of all Mexicans of voting age, according to the independent Federal Electoral Institute.

And if they get green cards amnesty and become citizens they should not be allowed to vote in mexico HE$$ they prolly wont even vote here they just want the freekin momey

[Libertina]

Cool. Vote as an "American" (legal or illegal) to allow all incoming Mexican aliens access to full benifits of the US...

Then vote as a Mexcan to uphold the ban on "foreigners" owning homes and land in Mexico. Cool
/ extremely disgusted sarcasm

[ATOMIC_PUNK]

extremely disgusted sarcasm

YOU GOT THAT RIGHT

[RCW2001]

Dual Citizenship should not be recognized by this Country. You choose one or the other. If you are a citizen of another country...you DO NOT vote here.

Very simple concept.

[Orion78]

EL BUMPO

[kezekiel]

I guess that place by my house where my Mexican neighbors go to wire money and buy phone cards will be a natural place for a Mexican voting booth. I see no problem at all with that, as long as they don't consider it a civil right *in America* to vote in a Mexican election, and try to force our government to get involved in the process.

[MissAmericanPie]

ha hahahahaha

[Regulator]

The colonization continues. What you will begin to see will be public places rented out to them, and a Mexican flag will fly over that place to denote the event.

Mexicans will line up to vote, and they will "elect" a representative from San Pedro, or Huntingtion Park, or wherever. That individual will then sit in the Mexican Congress, and speak for the residents of...that city in the U.S.

Eventually they will assert the right to enforce laws in those places, but of course, only on Mexican citizens. Which of course will require special police, who of course will not interfere with the current local police, but perhaps accompany them. To ensure the enforcement of Mexican laws affecting "their" citizens of course...

Fox has asserted that he is the president of all Mexicans. He intends to make good on this, and assert power in the U.S.

This is another step towards that.

Tell me - what will the President of the United States say about a foreign government setting up shop in the US?

[kezekiel]

Dude, you're flat wrong on this. What should we do, deport every last one of them? You can't lock down a border... if anybody could, it would be the Israelis, and they can't do it with a border a mere fraction the size of ours.

We have to make the best of this situation.

[Free the USA]

Check the Bump List folders for articles related to and descriptions of the above topic(s) or for other topics of interest.

[FITZ]

a civil right *in America* to vote in a Mexican election, and try to force our government to get involved in the process.

What's much worse is they can be "dual-citizens" and vote in both countries. They can vote for Mexican politicians in Mexico and for Mexican politicians in the US.