I Can’t Register To Vote, But You Should

I arrived in the United States with my family during the Summer of 2000. When I think back to those days, the main things that stick out are the South Florida heat and all of the struggles I faced in adjusting to middle school.

However, I do wish I had paid some attention to the 2000 Bush/Gore election since the entire “hanging chad” episode was taking around the corner from where I lived at the time. I was 11-years-old at the time.

Today, twenty years later, election season remains a spectator sport for me. I am undocumented, which means (regardless of what the Donald Trump tells you about “illegal voters”) that I can’t register to vote, nor can I vote in any election.

I have never voted in any election. My home country of Venezuela has made it difficult for citizens abroad to engage in the democratic process (if you believe Democracy still exists in Venezuela), and I’m not even registered! That means I can’t vote in Venezuelan elections either.

If you consider Student Government elections “real,” then I voted for myself in one of those. I won a hyper-competitive (LOL!) Student Senate seat during my time at Florida State University by TWO (2) votes.

I share all of this because I want to illustrate my personal experiences with casting a ballot for something or someone I believe it.

I’ve lived in the United States for twenty years. My future still depends on people (like you, dear reader) voting for the politicians, policies, and platforms will directly impact MY life (and consequently, the lives of 11 million people).

You may think I have “chosen” to remain undocumented, that somehow I have not “waited in line to get my papers like everyone else.” Nothing could be further from the truth.

Yes, my legal status prohibits me from voting and will keep me from voting for quite some time, but the system that keeps me from becoming a U.S. Citizen its a broken one. I stay engaged in immigration and politics hoping to change that.

I don’t have a vote in this election — but I have my voice, the Internet, and this tiny corner of the Internet. So, while I can’t register to vote, you can — and you should!