Around 79,000 eligible Kansas voters are naturalized citizens. Their votes could help decide close races.
Kansas isn’t a battleground state nationally, but several key races are on the ballot, including the makeup of the entire state Legislature.
Experts say first-time voters could play a decisive role. That includes the thousands of Kansans who become new citizens each year.
At a naturalization ceremony in Wichita in September, more than 120 people from 33 countries gathered in a crowded auditorium to take the oath of citizenship. They’re part of the approximately 2,500 people who become citizens at formal ceremonies in Kansas each year, according to federal court officials.
As new citizens filtered out of the auditorium, they were met with hugs, flowers and tears from family and friends. The ceremony was among the last in Kansas before the state closed voter registration last month. Volunteers with the League of Women Voters Wichita were there to help them register to vote.
Nancy Brown, the league’s co-president, passed out dozens of voter registration forms in English and Spanish. She said that nearly half of the people who became citizens at the ceremony ended up registering.
“It’s just a really exciting time to be engaging potential voters,” she said. “When I’m helping somebody register, I always remind them, ‘OK, you’re registered now. Do your research and get out and vote because that’s what matters.’”
The number of foreign-born U.S. voters has steadily climbed in recent years, reaching 24 million in 2022 — double the number as in 2000. According to the Pew Research Center, naturalized voters tend to be older than U.S.-born voters and are more likely to have a bachelor’s degree.
“The family income of immigrant eligible voters is higher, on average, than U.S. eligible voters,” said Jens Manuel Krogstad, a senior writer and editor at Pew.
Immigrant voters are not a monolith, but research in several states by the U.S. Immigration Policy Center indicates that they’re more likely to identify as Democrats than Republicans. Respondents said their top political concern was the high cost of living and inflation, followed by immigration and the economy in general.
There are around 79,000 immigrants eligible to vote in Kansas, according to a Pew analysis of the Census Bureau’s 2022 American Community Survey. That makes up around 4% of eligible voters in the state — but experts say it could still make a difference.
“In close races, there are enough immigrant eligible voters in Kansas where they could play a key role in deciding an outcome,” Krogstad said.
That could be decisive in key Kansas legislative races, where fewer than a thousand votes sometimes separates winners from losers. Every seat in the Kansas Legislature is on the ballot this election, and a handful of close races are expected to determine whether Republicans will retain their supermajority.
One of the new citizens who registered to vote after the Wichita naturalization ceremony is Ifeanyi Obiajulu, who moved to Kansas from Nigeria six years ago. A travel nurse whose permanent home is in Salina, Obiajulu has been working at Ascension Via Christi St. Francis in Wichita since April. He works mainly overnight shifts, caring for patients in the intensive care unit.
Now that he’s a citizen, he hopes it’ll be easier for his wife who still lives in Nigeria to join him in Kansas. He’s also excited to participate in the democratic process.
“Becoming a citizen avails me of that opportunity to run for office; get involved in what is going on in the country, perhaps in my local community and county,” he said.
It’s an opportunity, he says, that he didn’t have in the same way in his home country.
“America is the land of the free, and that gives you the leverage to do what is right. Some of us don’t really come from a place where you have the liberty to do what is right,” he said. “So I feel very happy to be here.”
Foreign-born U.S. permanent residents pursue citizenship for varied and complex reasons, according to Wichita immigration attorney Sandrine Lisk, who’s been helping people become citizens for nearly three decades. Many of her clients want to ensure that they’ll be able to stay in the country long-term and stop worrying about whether changes in presidential administrations could threaten their residency. Others want to be able to petition for parents, siblings and children to join them in the U.S.
But Lisk says politics is an increasing factor in her clients’ decisions to become citizens.
“This year, particularly, most people have wanted to naturalize so that they can vote,” she said. “The upcoming election has been a great motivator.”
Some of Lisk’s clients have expressed concern about what they see as rising anti-immigrant rhetoric in American politics.
“I think (the increased interest in voting) is a little bit of both wanting to have a say in who becomes our next representatives, either on the federal, state or local level,” she said, “but also fear about what could happen to them if they’re not U.S. citizens.”
Lisk says many new citizens are worried about experiencing voter intimidation at the polls. Voter intimidation is illegal, and Lisk says it’s rare — but it does occasionally happen. Anyone who experiences intimidation should report it to poll workers.
The Department of Justice has appointed a District Election Officer to oversee election-day complaints of voting rights concerns, threats of violence and election fraud. Kansans can contact Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared Maag at (785) 295-2850.
The Kansas Secretary of State has an online form to report complaints of voter fraud.
The ACLU is operating a nonpartisan Election Protection Hotline at 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683) offering help to voters in English, Spanish, Vietnamese and several other languages.
Obiajulu says he’s excited about voting this election. But he’s most looking forward to settling down in Kansas for good. He likes the change of pace from his bustling hometown of Lagos, Nigeria.
“When I came (to the U.S.) at first, Kansas seemed a little bit laid back,” he said. “But after living here for a while, I developed more love for Kansas.”
“So since then, I’m stuck,” he added. “And I like being stuck in Kansas.”
Rose Conlon reports on health for KMUW and the Kansas News Service.
The Kansas News Service is a collaboration of KCUR, KMUW, Kansas Public Radio and High Plains Public Radio focused on health, the social determinants of health and their connection to public policy.
Kansas News Service stories and photos may be republished by news media at no cost with proper attribution and a link to ksnewsservice.org.
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