Mi Familia Vota Education Fund

History

Mi Familia Vota Education Fund’s parent organization launched in July 2000 under the name “Mi Familia Vota 100%” with support from the Organization of Los Angeles Workers (OLAW), which trained members of labor unions with significant Hispanic membership. OLAW campaigned for pro-union political candidates with support from Hispanic-interest and immigrant-activist groups, conducting voter outreach. ³⁴

Mission

Mi Familia Vota Education Fund is explicit about its intent to shift the demographics of the American electorate. The Fund works to expand the electorate using the naturalization process to achieve its vision of a future in which the electorate reflects increasing diversity in the United States. MFV facilitates the Fund’s work by walking immigrants through the process of becoming citizens and eligible voters, and by pushing for a path to citizenship for the over 10.5 million illegal immigrants estimated to reside in the United States. ⁵ MFV’s campaigns for generating eligible voters through citizenship and registration are part of the Ya Es Hora initiative, and include Ciudadania, Hagase Contar, and Ve Y Vota⁶⁷

Cuidadania

Ciudadania (“citizenship”) centers assist Latino immigrants with the process of becoming citizens and registering to vote. The Ciudadania website encourages new citizens to shape government policies that impact Latino communities. ⁸

Hagase Contar

The Hagase Contar (“make yourself count”) campaign aimed to maximize Hispanic participation in the 2010 United States Census, which determined how hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars are distributed to communities. ⁹

Ve Y Vota

The Ve Y Vota (“go and vote”) campaign built on the census participation drive by encouraging left-leaning Latinos to vote in the 2012 election. ¹⁰

Legal Action

Mi Familia Vota and Mi Familia Vota Education Fund have filed multiple lawsuits related to voter registration. The groups tend to take on cases that, in their view, disproportionately affect Hispanic Democratic voters.

Florida

In July 2013, a federal court dismissed a lawsuit against the Florida secretary of state from MFV and two minority citizens. The American Civil Liberties Union and Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, which brought the lawsuit on their behalf, claimed that a routine voter roll cleanup would disproportionately target minority voters. They asserted that Florida had to get federal approval to conduct the cleanup due to past voter discrimination. However, the Supreme Court struck down the portion of the Voting Rights Act which selectively targeted voting jurisdictions with additional scrutiny, and the federal court dismissed the lawsuit in accordance with the ruling. ¹¹

Arizona

In August 2018, a coalition which included MFVEF sued the state, alleging that the National Voter Registration Act required the government to use motor vehicle records to automatically update voter registration information. To settle the case, the state agreed to link Department of Transportation records and voter registration systems. ¹²

Texas

In September 2020, a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit by MFV and several other parties, which claimed that Texas’ in-person voting procedures placed an unconstitutional burden on voters because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Governor Greg Abbott (R) addressed one of the plaintiffs’ demands by extending early voting, but the judge ruled that the court lacked the jurisdiction to order any changes. ¹³

Finances

Much like its parent organization, Mi Familia Vota Education Fund experienced a significant drop in contributions from 2016 to 2017. ¹⁴¹⁵ MFV reported funding shortfalls starting in 2016, even after receiving a $500,000 donation from the George Soros-funded group Everybody Votes. MFV said that other donors had pledged money but had yet to deliver. ¹⁶