Naturalized American citizens: Are you going to vote in November? - Public Insight Network | St. Louis Beacon and the Nine Network of Public Media

Naturalized American citizens: Are you going to vote in November?

In fiscal years 2009, 2010 and 2011, more than 7,500 immigrants in St. Louis became naturalized U.S. citizens. If you are one of them, in November, you are probably eligible to vote. But will you? Naturalized citizens -- foreign nationals who have earned U.S. citizenship -- traditionally vote at lower rates for various of reasons, including language barriers, socioeconomic status and lack of voter mobilization. In 2008, 71.8 percent of native citizens were registered to vote nationwide and 64.4 voted. Of naturalized citizens, 60.5 percent were registered and 54 percent voted.

The Beacon is looking for naturalized citizens, whether recent, or not-so-recent, who are willing to share their views on politics, government and elections. Please respond to the questions below and share your insights.

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E-mail *

First Name *

Last Name *

Street Address

City *

State or Province

Postal Code *

Country

Phone *

Are you a naturalized citizen of the United States?

Yes
No

If you are a naturalized citizen, what is your country of origin? When did you become a citizen of the United States?

Are you planning to vote in the November 2012 general election?

Yes
No

Before coming to the United States, did you vote in your home country? Were you politically active? Please tell us about your experience with government, politics and elections back home.

Please tell us something about what role the past in your home country plays in shaping your participation in your new one.

What else should we know, or what else would you like to know, about this election and voting rights? If you know of someone else we should contact, please give us a way to reach them (email address/telephone number).

If you have an original photo of yourself, or one that illustrates this topic, please upload it here. (No larger than 2MB, please!)

Please share some details about this photo: names, date, location, and the story behind it.

May we publish your insights (and any uploaded files) and attribute them to you? A reporter, editor or producer will contact you to confirm. (Your comments may be edited for length or clarity and a reporter may want to interview you further.) *

Yes
No

Now, please answer a few questions that will help us better understand your perspective. None of this information is required.

What's your occupation? If you are a student, which school do you attend? If you are retired, what is your former occupation?

In what year were you born?

How old are you today?

What is your race or ethnicity?

With which political party, if any, do you identify most closely?

If you picked "other," please explain.

How did you receive this PIN query?

I received this query by direct email.
I saw this query on the Beacon website.
I saw this query on the Nine Network website.
I saw this query on Facebook.
I saw this query on Twitter.
This query was forwarded to me by a friend.
Other

If you picked "other," please explain.

Feel free to pass this form on to anyone you know who might want to share their insights. Here's a link to give them: http://bit.ly/NewAmericansvote0812

Your Information

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