Millions of Americans Will Not Vote in English on Election Day

Millions of Americans Will Not Vote in English on Election Day

Tuesday, November 8 is Election Day in the United States.

This year, American voters will be taking part in what is known as midterm elections. The elections are called this because they happen nearly two years – or about the middle point – into the term of the U.S. president.

Members of the U.S. House of Representatives are elected every two years. So in the midterms, all 435 House seats are decided¹. In addition, every two years one third of U.S. Senate members are either elected or leave their seats at the end of the term.

American voters will also be choosing governors, state lawmakers and local officials. The election results will decide which party controls Congress, as well as state offices and legislatures.

In order to vote in federal and state elections, a person must be a U.S. citizen and be at least 18 years of age. The person also has to meet the state residency requirements. In every state except North Dakota, people must also register to become voters.

This year, more than 80 million Americans will have the chance to vote in a language other than English. That is because U.S. federal law guarantees that certain groups of people can receive language assistance in the voting process.

Gabe Osterhout is a researcher at the Idaho Policy Institute at Boise State University. He said, "The idea was to take groups that were historically excluded from the electoral process, and the mission was to make it more accessible for some of those groups."

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was signed into law to protect the right to vote for African Americans mainly in the South. The act was expanded in 1975 to include certain language minorities. These included Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Latinos and Asian Americans.

Jim Tucker is a lawyer with the Voting Rights Project at the nonprofit Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. He noted² that for citizens with limited knowledge of English, voting information can be "a barrier to the ability to participate."

How do officials decide on languages?

Every five years, the U.S. Census³ Bureau chooses which minority language groups will receive help with information in their native language.

That decision is based on whether more than 5 percent of eligible⁴ voters in an area speak limited English, or if there are more than 10,000 eligible voters in an area with limited English ability. Local elections officials are then required to offer voting materials, including ballots⁵, in that second language.

In December 2021, the U.S. Census identified 331 areas that meet the requirements ahead of the 2022 midterm elections. Most of the covered areas, called jurisdictions⁶, are in three states, California, Florida and Texas. Those states must provide Spanish-language voting materials in every statewide election.

Registration⁷ and voting data from November 1996 and 2000 found evidence that the addition of a second language has "positive effects on the voting rates of covered linguistic⁸ minorities."

The research was carried out by professors Michael Jones-Correa and Israel Waismel-Manor. It found that voter turnout among Latinos was 11 percent higher in areas covered by the language requirements than in those that did not provide materials and assistance in Spanish. The professors also found that voter registration among Latinos was 15 percent higher in areas that provided language assistance than those that did not.

Tucker observed large participation⁹ increases in all four groups covered under the language requirements. These include American Indians, Alaska Natives, Latino or Spanish-speaking voters, and Asian Americans who speak Asian languages since 1975.

The Voting Rights Act was supposed to end by 1970, but it has been extended five times. The last extension, for 25 years, came in 2006.

Words in This Story

residency - n. the state or fact of living in a place

accessible - adj. easy to appreciate or understand

participate - v. to take part in an activity

eligible - adj. able to do or receive something

positive - adj. good or useful

1 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

2 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

3 census   

n.(官方的)人口调查，人口普查

参考例句：

• A census of population is taken every ten years.人口普查每10年进行一次。
• The census is taken one time every four years in our country.我国每四年一次人口普查。

4 eligible   

adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的

参考例句：

• He is an eligible young man.他是一个合格的年轻人。
• Helen married an eligible bachelor.海伦嫁给了一个中意的单身汉。

5 ballots   

n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 jurisdictions   

司法权( jurisdiction的名词复数 )； 裁判权； 管辖区域； 管辖范围

参考例句：

• Butler entreated him to remember the act abolishing the heritable jurisdictions. 巴特勒提醒他注意废除世袭审判权的国会法令。
• James I personally adjudicated between the two jurisdictions. 詹姆士一世亲自裁定双方纠纷。

7 registration   

n.登记，注册，挂号

参考例句：

• Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
• What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？

8 linguistic   

adj.语言的，语言学的

参考例句：

• She is pursuing her linguistic researches.她在从事语言学的研究。
• The ability to write is a supreme test of linguistic competence.写作能力是对语言能力的最高形式的测试。

9 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。