Donald Trump's steady rhetoric against immigrants has pushed them to apply for legal citizenship to vote in the U.S. presidential elections in November. Immigrants are doing this move to ensure that the GOP nominee will not win the presidency.
Immigrants applying for legal citizenship have spiked up to 12.8 percent from the previous rate recorded over the same period last year, according to an analysis from NPR. People have started applying for legal citizenship since June 2015, a time when Trump started his anti-immigrant campaign.
Trump Effect
From October 2015 to January 2016, a total of 249,609 immigrants have applied for naturalization, the Pew Research Center reported. Majority of the immigrants said their application for naturalization is a way to prevent Trump from being the next president of the U.S. They also said they are planning to vote against hate and racism.
Almost 9 million legal permanent residents or green-card holders are eligible for an American citizenship, according to the Associated Press. Around 3.9 million of that number is Hispanic while 1.5 million are Asian, the DHS wrote. However, Mexican immigrants are reportedly less likely to apply for legal citizenship than other immigrant groups.
Organizations Helping Legal Citizenship Seekers
The group iAmerica Action is one of the organizations supporting a national campaign named "Stand Up to Hate" to help immigrants seeking legal citizenship. The group has sponsored naturalization workshops in states including Massachusetts, Nebraska and Washington, D.C.
Illinois Rep. Luis Gutiérrez, one of the political figures opposing Trump's stance on immigration, has encouraged immigrants to apply for legal citizenship to vote against the business magnate, the Associated Press wrote. The National Association of Latino Elected Officials helped launched a regional campaign in Los Angeles encouraging Latino immigrants to apply for citizenship. Around 775,000 legal immigrants are eligible for citizenship in LA.
Immigration advocates have held 300 workshops around the U.S. The groups said they have reached out to around 500,000 immigrants and aided 12,781 of them in filling out natural citizenship applications, NBC News reported.
In order to qualify, immigrants must be in the U.S. for five years, complete a 21-page application and have their fingerprints recorded. They must also pass a civics and English exam, pay about $700 in fees and complete a naturalization test via an interview.
Trump's anti-immigrant plans if he becomes president include building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and banning Muslims from entering the country. He also vows to cut off remittances that Mexican immigrants in the U.S. send to their families back home.
