Immigrants on voting sidelines

Voters could make history this November.

And Karen Ornelas, an advertising executive from Blaine, may have to watch it all unfold from the sidelines.

The 64-year-old is one of more than 1 million immigrants whose applications for U.S citizenship are caught up in a massive government backlog and who are watching momentum build around this year's presidential elections, while knowing they won't likely be sworn in as U.S. citizens in time to vote.

"That would be a disappointment because I'm quite excited about the election," Ornelas said. Born in Canada, Ornelas has lived in the United States off and on since she was a child but has never been eligible to vote here.

"I'm marrying a guy who is a Republican who said to me the other day, 'Now I'll have to tell you how to vote.' I laughed. I quite like the Democrats; I'm fascinated by Barack Obama, but I also love the idea of a woman becoming president."

Voters in November could very well elect the country's first female or African-American president. And the excitement of it all — from the surprising early primary-season results to the fiery political debates — has energized people of all races, young and old.

But in the midst of it all, the Department of Homeland Security is delivering some sobering news: Many of the 1.4 million who first applied for citizenship last year may have to be content as observers and not participants in this year's election.

The delays and backlogs are hitting two groups of would-be citizens.

One includes people like Ornelas who completed applications for citizenship in the days and weeks before a July 2007 fee change raised the cost of naturalization from $400 to $675. Fees for other immigrant benefits also increased.

That midyear surge of applicants trying to avoid the higher fee doubled the total number of cases for the year and overwhelmed the already-beleaguered U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, which processes such requests.

Homeland Security officials say they are working to clear the backlog but admit the process, which used to take an average of eight months from application to swearing in, will now take at least twice as long, making it unlikely that many of those waiting will get a vote in November.

To vote, Washington citizens must have registered with the Secretary of State's Office at least 30 days before an election, or 15 days if registering in person at a county election department.

The second group includes people like Maziar Oskouian, a 35-year-old Kirkland insurance broker whose citizenship applications have been stalled for years in a Federal Bureau of Investigation background check.

More than 300,000 immigrants — mostly from Muslim or Middle Eastern countries — find themselves in this backlog.

Oskouian, who came to the United States from Iran in 1984 and applied for citizenship three years ago, said he's been watching the presidential debates, carefully studying the candidates. With so many weighty issues on the table, he is still undecided about whom he'd support if he could vote.

"This is one of those events where people will look back and say, 'Yes, I was part of the millions who helped to make history.' But it looks like I won't be one of those millions."

Daniel Tichenor, a research professor and immigration expert at Rutgers University, said while the security checks are necessary to ensure the nation's safety, creating too high a barrier can challenge the practice of democracy.

"The right to vote is one of the fundamental ways newcomers can feel they have been fully incorporated into a new society," Tichenor said. "Denial of that access ... can have a chilling effect, particularly in an election that is likely to motivate a record number of voters."

Sharon Rummery, spokeswoman for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, said while the agency recognizes and admires a person's desire to vote, "we won't compromise our standards so that they can."

Len Saunders, an immigration attorney from Blaine who helped a number of immigrants apply for citizenship last summer, said the pool of people who could be shut out of this year's election is significant, "given how close the margins of victory in the past have been."

The Canadian-born Saunders has lived in the United States with a green card for five years and also applied for citizenship last summer. "If you have 1 million immigrants with naturalization held up, that's 1 million potential votes," he said.

"Depending on whether they vote Republican or Democrat, that could sway the election right there."

Passports

Along with the right to vote, citizenship also allows people to hold a coveted U.S. passport, which eases travel in most parts of the world. Citizens also may petition for family members back home to join them in the United States.

Citizenship also represents greater security at a time when more active immigration enforcement has led to more deportations — including large numbers of people with green cards who are legal permanent residents.

For Oskouian, citizenship would mean finally feeling like a permanent member of a country that helped shape his life.

He's long been active in local politics, frequently attending Kirkland City Council meetings. And he'd like to run for public office someday. "But I've not been able to take that final step."

"Obviously, America is my home," he said. "I want to be part of this country. But from an immigration standpoint, my status is that of a guest."

Ornelas said it makes sense for her to become a citizen; she'll soon marry a retired U.S. Navy officer, and all three of her sons have served in the U.S. military.

She first came to the U.S. from Canada when she was 14 and has lived in the two countries most of her life. Not being able to vote as a citizen "has always bothered me," she said. "I feel more American than Canadian."

Lornet Turnbull: 206-464-2420 or lturnbull@seattletimes.com