Migrant Candidate for the State Legislature
in Michoacán, México
Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD)
Email:
jesus@jesusmartinez.org
The construction of this page will be on-going during the 2004 electoral process in
Michoacan, Mexico. Please visit it on a regular basis to obtain the latest
information about a historic campaign to secure formal representation of the
migrant community in the legislature of our beautiful home state.
I am running as a migrant representative for a seat in the Michoacan state
legislature. If elected, this would mark the first time that there is formal
representation of the migrant community in the legislature of Michoacan, a state
with one of the oldest and strongest traditions of migration to the United States.
My candidacy for the state legislature in Michoacan is the result of the efforts of
migrant groups in the United States who have, for many years now, attempted to
convince the authorities and political parties of their home state to be more
responsive to the needs, interests, and rights of migrants and their families on
both sides of the border. This has been a difficult struggle with some important
successes but there are still many barriers that have not been eliminated.
An important event in this historic struggle was the presentation in July 2003 of a
bill by Governor Lazaro Cardenas Batel to permit michoacanos abroad the right to
vote for governor and the state legislature and also to permit migrant
representation in the legislative body. Although more than a year has passed, the
bill has not even been voted on because the governor's party, the Party of the
Democratic Revolution (PRD) does not have a legislative majority and the other
parties have opposed this initiative presenting arguments that, unfortunately,
reflect a serious ignorance and misunderstanding of the michoacano migrant
experience. The constitutional period to pass the bill in time to allow migrants to
participate in the November 14, 2004 election came and went, perpetuating our
exclusion from the electoral process.
In light of this situation, michoacano migrant organizations, most notably the
Frente Binacional Michoacano (Michoacano Binational Front or Frebimich),
spearheaded a lobbying campaign to convince the leading parties to at least
include one migrant representative in their list of legislative candidates,
specifically in the category known as diputados plurinominales, which refers to the
state legislators that are distributed to each party on a proportional basis,
according to the percentage of the total vote obtained in the state elections (the
Michoacan state legislature has 40 seats, 24 are won through traditional district
elections and the remaining 16 are distributed to the parties based on the
proportional system).
The PRD responded to the migrant requests and reserved the third position in its
list of diputados plurinominales for a representatitve of the migrant community.
Such a position makes the possibility that the migrant representative will arrive to
the state legislature highly probable, since it is estimated that the PRD will easily
receive more than three proportional seats.
My involvement as the migrant candidate for the state legislature came at the
request of migrant leaders, who were convinced that my characteristics as a
migrant and as a scholar-activist who specializes in the study of Mexican
immigration to the US would make me well-qualified to promote migrant causes and
interests in the state legislature. For this I am profoundly grateful because without
the support of the migrant leaders the migrant candidacy has no real legitimacy.
Their trust in me makes the candidacy a grassroots project, not simply a decision
that is made by party leaders. Moreover, their enthusiasm and love for Michoacan
provides me with the motivation to engage in a line of work that is certainly going
to be challenging.
On July 25, 2004 the Michoacan PRD held its state convention and began the tasks
of the day by confirming the reservation of the third position of the diputados
plurinominales for a representative of the migrant community. The decision not
only received widespread support but a good number of the delegates even
wanted to move the migrant position to the first place of the list of proportional
seats. After that event, I was formally included in the PRD list of diputados, along
with Reveriano Orozco, a well-known migrant leader based in Las Vegas, who is my
alternate (candidates for most public offices in Mexico have alternates who
substitute them in case the elected individual does not or cannot complete the
term). Together, Reveriano and I hope to contribute to the development and
promotion of pro-migrant policies in order to benefit the families in the sending
communities and also to help develop bilateral ties with migrants in the US, as well
as the community organizations and authorities who work with immigrant groups in
California, Illinois, Texas, Nevada, Alaska, and other American entities.
Please spread the word about the migrant candidacy in Michoacan and persuade
your fellow michoacanos to vote for the PRD in order to advance a pro-migrant
agenda in our home state. Thank you!
this Site (Spanish):
Substitute Candidate
about the Candidacy
to Vote to Michoacanos
Abroad
Front (Frebimich)
Binational Forum of
the Michoacan Migrant
Language Main Page
Official Site
Official Site
Mexican Immigration
in the United States
Población
California
Internacionales
We the People: Helping
Newcomers Become
Californians
Center
Statistics on the
Foreign-Born Population
of the US
• To develop a legislative agenda derived from constant consultation with the
migrant communities.
• To contribute to the strengthening of the relation between the Michocan
state government, including the legislature, and migrant communities.
• To develop and promote the necessary electoral reforms to permit the
political participation and representation of michoacanos abroad.
• To develop a bill to create the Migration Secretariat in order to better
address the complex challenges of international migration.
• To promote economic development in the state, this includes supporting the
productive projects backed by migrants.
• To establish a permanent institutional presence in the regions of the US with
a considerable presence of Michoacan migrants, and to stimulate bilateral relations,
including trade.
• To continue developing bilateral cooperation in areas such as health and
eduction.
• To promote the civic participation of migrants so that they may be better
qualified to defend their human, labor, and political rights on both sides of the
border.
• To establish and strengthen relations with US authorities, non-governmental
organizations, and community agencies that serve our migrant community.
• To encourage the creation and strengthening of migrant organizations.
• To support the strengthening of the educational system in our state and
promote the integration of migration to the plans of study of the different
educational levels.
• To promote reforms that benefit migrants before the Mexican national
Congress.