¡A votar se ha dicho! Bilingual campaign in SELA promotes voting for midterm elections

¡A votar se ha dicho! Bilingual campaign in SELA promotes voting for midterm elections

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As midterm elections are fast approaching, leaders from the Southeast L.A. area (SELA) say civic participation shouldn’t have to be limited to registering and voting the day of elections. It should be an ongoing process to continue bringing more voters to the polls, especially young ones.

For this reason, the SELA Collaborative, along with partner organizations, has launched SELA Decides, ¡A votar, se ha dicho! A community-centered civic engagement initiative created to help Southeast L.A. residents stay informed, participate and make their voices heard.

Francisco Moreno, director of Council of Mexican Federations in North America (COFEM), said canvassing in the neighborhoods is outdated because people don’t really open their doors anymore. Now organizations have to come up with new strategies, like approaching people at places where they gather in person as well as via social media. 

“We have three main points to focus…but the most important vote is the young vote,” said Moreno. 

One of them is to have promotoras providing information in different AltaMed clinics. 

“Someone may visit our Bell Gardens clinic for an appointment, medication or to accompany a family member, and while there, they can also vote, and that's why it is part of their civic health,” said Lizzette Escobedo with AltaMed. “The person who votes today may attend a community meeting tomorrow, advocate for their neighborhood or become a trusted messenger for someone else.”  

Another one is to attract older voters through “dichos” or popular phrases that Latinos associate with.

“The participant organizations will use Mexican or Latino phrases like, ‘camarón que se duerme se lo lleva la corriente,’” he said. The phrase literally translates to "the shrimp that falls asleep is carried away by the current."  

The third and most important one is directed to the youth. SELA Decides will open a contest where young voters will upload videos encouraging other youth, 18 and older, to vote. 

“They will do shorts for one or two minutes with their own ideas. It will be a challenge and the videos with the most views will win,” said Moreno, stating that the participants have to be college students. “The first place will win scholarships of $3,000, $2,000 and $1,000.” 

Sharing information is vital 

The SELA Decides campaign is a partnership with local SELA organizations, including AltaMed, CalMatters, COFEM, the Pat Brown Institute and Newstart Housing Corporation 

Mike Wang, from the Pat Brown Institute, said voting is the most visible way to participate in democracy, and it is essential.

“One reason to sort of participate in the long form, having a long sustained strategy for us and for the community, is because there are a lot of things that happen in politics that just take a long time to unfold,” said Wang.

Rosa Romero, outreach coordinator with NewStart Housing Corporation, said that through the different parts of the campaign, everyone can participate and engage with their families and communicate about the importance of voting. 

People don’t have to be experts, but they can help others to register, talk to family members about elections, where the locations are, and how to participate. 

Romero said SELA is often providing educational information and encouraging people to participate. 

“SELA is always updating information, not only of events in the communities, but also what's going on in the voting period. Make sure to get involved,” she said.