Vote Aquí

Abstract

Literate English speakers in the United States have always had the benefit of holding a ballot in a language they understand. Yet there is an often overlooked history of states protecting non-English-speaking voters and the illiterate. Consider New Mexico, where elections in many counties and even the territorial legislature itself operated in Spanish for decades after the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo made the former Mexican citizens who remained on the land citizens of the United States in 1848. 1 The political strength of Spanish speakers in New Mexico resulted in the election of Spanish-surnamed governors, state legislators, and many other elected officials, including the nation's first Mexican American U.S. senator, Octaviano Larrazolo. 2 In the nineteenth century, many states encouraged greater voter participation through literacy and language aid. 3 New York offered sample ballots and instruction cards in 1892 in "other languages as the officer or officers charged with providing them shall deem necessary." 4 In 1891, Colorado state law decreed: "When any voter … shall also make oath that he cannot speak and understand when spoken, the English language … interpreters may assist such persons … in making up their ballots." 5 In New Mexico, where a larger illiterate and Spanish-speaking population resided, ballots were printed with party-specific emblems to assist voters. 6 This extension of the ballot to the illiterate and non-English speakers corresponded with higher voter participation than subsequent elections in the twentieth century. 7 Ballots since then have become increasingly inscrutable due to changes to the election system itself. The secret ballot became standard in the 1880s, meaning voters cast their votes in private voting booths, which could make it harder for illiterate or non-English-speaking voters. The Progressive Era also encouraged citizen-created initiatives and referendums, which required voters to obtain at times a postgraduate level of education to understand the (often poorly written) proposed legislation. 8 Meanwhile, as voter responsibility increased, millions of immigrants entered the United States-many of whom naturalized prior to an English-language requirement or without sufficient English-language skills to understand the ballot.