11/4/2005
The Charolotte Observer

Effort aims to register eligible citizens for '06 presidential election

FRANCO ORDOÑEZ

fordonez@charlotteobserver.com


A regional voter registration drive kicks off today aimed at boosting turnout in a much anticipated election -- in Mexico.

Leaders of the local Mexican community plan to step up efforts today to help register hundreds of thousands of Mexican citizens living in the Carolinas. For the first time, they will be able to vote in a Mexican presidential election without having to return to the country to do so.

"As Mexicans, we must exercise our right to vote," said Jose Olguin, coordinator of Grupo Voluntario Azteca, which is helping organize the drive for the July 2 presidential election. Few have signed up so far, organizers said. But they hope to generate more interest by appealing to nationals' civic duty at signup booths at churches, shopping centers, soccer fields and other sites where Latinos congregate.

Mexican nationals previously had to travel back to Mexico to vote. But many who were undocumented chose not to return considering the risks of returning to the U.S. without proper documentation. This summer, Mexican lawmakers, yielded to political pressure from abroad and approved the country's first absentee ballot plan.

Mexican lawmakers say the millions of voters living in the U.S. could help sway the 2006 Mexican election. Roughly 10 percent (approximately 11 million) of the citizenry lives abroad, with a vast majority in the U.S. About 4 million of those living abroad are believed to be eligible to vote.

An estimated 550,000 Mexicans live in the Carolinas, according to the Mexican Consulate in Raleigh. The highest concentration of which is in Charlotte. The consulate distributed 7,356 forms from Oct. 1 to Nov. 25 throughout the Carolinas.

Mexican nationals living abroad who have electoral identification cards must register by Jan 15.

Olguin said he will set up a table today outside Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church on Deese Street in Monroe to help Mexican nationals fill out forms. Applications can also be picked up at the Mexican Consulate in Raleigh and the Latin American Coalition in Charlotte. Applications can also be downloaded at the Mexican federal elections board's Web site.

"When it comes to the presidential election, we only get one shot every six years," said Wayne Cooper, North Carolina's honorary Mexican consul in Charlotte. "It's going to be an interesting race this year. It always is. I just wish we can get more people registered."

How to Register

For more information on registering for the 2006 Mexican election, visit www.ife.org.mx.

Or contact:

• Grupo Voluntario Azteca at (704) 287-4570.

• Latin American Coalition at (704) 531-3848.

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